A KIND-HEARTED youngster from Ramsbottom had her precious long hair cut off to raise money for her relative who has incurable cancer.

Ellie Fletcher had grown her hair for three years after an unfortunate incident with some scissors, but decided to have her locks lopped off so they could be used to make wigs for children battling cancer.

The seven-year-old had grown her hair after developing a love of the Disney film 'Tangled' based on the Rapunzel fairytale, and had wanted to grow her locks long enough that she could sit on them.

Ellie’s mum Terri, who lives in Stanford Hall Crescent, said: “I was flicking through Facebook when Ellie saw a picture of my cousin who is currently fighting a battle against cancer. Ellie commented that Sally's hair was so much longer and looked nice.

“I told her that Sally was wearing a wig, and we then had a talk about how, when some people are very poorly, they have to have a special medicine which will help them but can make their hair fall out.

“I explained that when that happens, a lot of people will wear a wig and she asked how they are made.

“We talked about how people can donate their own hair and she decided that she would like to have her hair cut short to help another little girl have a wig made.

Ellie has been growing her hair since she was four years old.

Terri added: “We have had to battle with her just to have a teeny trim, so for her to want to have her hair cut is huge, but that is Ellie all over. She might be little but she has a huge heart and she would do anything for anyone."

The St Andrew's Primary School pupil has raised £612.50 through sponsorships and will donate that money to her mum’s cousin, Sally Duncan, aged 44.

The fundraising bid has also been boosted after receiving a plug from Ellie's cousin, Coronation Street star Catherine Tyldesley, who mentioned it on her blog.

The soap star wrote: "My cousin Ellie is doing something wonderful. She is donating her beautifully long hair so that another little girl, poorly with cancer, is able to have a wig made."

Sally, from Horwich, set up her own fundraising page called ‘Sally’s Army’ to raise cash for research into ovarian cancer and The Christie.

She said: "What Ellie has done is absolutely fantastic, I am over the moon that she decided to have her hair cut for my charity.

"With the money which Ellie has raised we will hit the £40,000 mark, which I never thought we would achieve. We only set a target of £5,000 to start with."

She is currently undergoing the latest cycle of chemotherapy at the hospital, and added: "I have been quite poorly the past couple of weeks but I am doing OK at the moment."

Sally, who married her husband Kenny Duncan earlier this year, has raised more than £38,000 for The Christie in the past year through a number of charity events, and Ellie's haircut will add to the total.

Sally has just released an iconic film-themed calendar for 2016, with all proceeds going towards Sally’s Army.

To find out more: go to tinyurl.com/sallysarmy

Donations to Ellie's fundraiser can be made via tinyurl.com/ellieshaircut