A STUDENT has had 20in cut off her hair in memory of childhood friend Ethan Hunt.

Ethan, 16, died of sepsis in March, after spending a month in hospital, where he had both legs amputated. Molly Shaw had known Ethan since they started at St Mary’s Primary School together, before progressing to Burnley’s Blessed Trinity Roman Catholic College, ending up in the same form.

The 16-year-old has raised £760 for a charity Ethan wished to support , Little Princess Trust - which makes wigs for children who have lost their hair through cancer treatment.

After hearing the ‘devastating’ news of Ethan’s death, Molly decided to have 20in cut from her flowing locks at Vanilla hairdressers, Padiham, by Vicky Holland, who donated to the fund by putting the cost of the haircut into the proceeds.

Molly’s mum, Marianne, said: “She is a strong, resilient teenager and was keen to raise as much money as she possibly could to raise the funds for Ethan’s new legs. “From a young age Molly has always had lovely blonde locks. She wanted to cut her hair and have enough to donate to ‘Little Princess Trust’“Molly wanted to make sure as many people as possible benefited from her having her hair cut off.As she left the hairdressers, Molly was proud she had done it for Ethan and ““Myself, my husband Craig, along with Molly’s siblings George, 12, and Ella, six, are so proud of her as it’s such a selfless thing to do.”

A cheque was presented to Ethan’s dad, Andrew, who was present at the haircut with the tragic teen’s mum, Melanie.