Back in 2019, there was Chop Chop, when I had my hair cut pixie style to raise money for Anthony Nolan Trust, in memory of my school friend, Rick.

Well, 7 years, a pandemic and 2 pregnancies later, I have a good long mane of hair again. And this time I’m going even more radical… I’m going to have my head shaved – a buzz cut – for Bebe’s Hive!

Am I scared? Yes.

Do I think I’ll suit a buzz cut? Probably not.

Am I going to be cold? Absolutely!

But here’s the thing. I had such a strong reaction to the events that took place in Southport in 2024. I just needed to do something to help.

I don’t know anybody who wasn’t deeply saddened by what happened to those children and adults that day, and the families whose lives will never be the same again. On the Sunday afterwards, I gave everybody in church a pink ribbon, and they came up and placed it on the altar in memory of Bebe, Alice and Elsie. We prayed them, and have prayed many times since, for them and their families.

Bizzarely, that afternoon was Sophia’s third birthday party at KidzCove play cafe. I was heavily pregnant with Aidan at the time, which is why we chose to have a party there rather than a DIY party in the church hall like we usually would. It was that afternoon, seeing our family and friends queue up to get into the party, that the intrusive thoughts began. What damage could a stranger do right now, if they chose to?

And those intrusive thoughts have never gone away. From taking Aidan to baby class during my mat leave, to having a panic attack when I had to drop Sophia off at Rainbows for the first time, I am changed by this, even though I wasn’t even there.

I don’t want to dwell on that too much. This isn’t about me. But I want to tell you why I feel the need to do something so extreme for charity.

See, this isn’t just any charity. It’s the charity set up in memory of Bebe King. It’s a charity that provides free creative grief support for children and families navigating unimaginable loss.

I have chosen to support Bebe’s Hive because they chime with so many things that are important to me. As a sister, as a mother, as a Christian, as a minister, I am deeply moved by what Bebe’s parents have created. I know how important it is to hold a space for people to grieve, especially the little, tender and beautiful hearts of children. So it is my honour to be fundraising to Bebe’s Hive this spring.

When I was mulling this over, I thought about having my hair cut short again. It was so effective last time and people were very generous. I then had a thought process that went something like this:

If I’m having my hair cut short anyway, would I raise more money if I had my head shaved?

Don’t be stupid! I could never pull off a buzz cut!

Buzz cut.

Buzz.

Bebe’s Hive.

Buzz buzz bees…

Oh wow…even if I look ridiculous, I need to have a buzz cut!

And then the planning began!

As ever, my wonderful church is backing me. We are holding a coffee morning and the usual band of voluteers are coming to help make it happen. Not only that, but we included Bebe’s Hive in our giving last year, and £1000 was sent across this week.

In addition to the amazing church volunteers, my family will be out in full force to hopefully help me raise even more money by running additional stalls and activities.

During the coffee morning, long poneytails will be cut off my head. They will eventually be posted to Little Princess Trust, where they make wigs for children who have lost their hair through cancer treatment.

Then my Mum will shave my head!

I’ll be honest, there have been mixed reviews so far, especially from the church community. We have some older, quite traditional people who cannot imagine a female vicar with a shaved head.

I even had one conversation where somebody described the thought of me with so little hair as ‘pretty horrendous’, to which I said ‘do you know what was horrendous? What happened in Southport’.

There’s not really much more to it, is there?

It’s just hair! And as my hero, Jo March says: ‘It doesn’t affect the state of the union, it will grow back.’ Just like it did last time.

So, that’s it!

Please come along to the coffee morning. It’s on 14th March, 10-1. If you can donate a raffle prize or bake a cake, please get in touch. If you can’t come, please consider donating to the fundraising page.

A huge thank you for reading. And thank you for all your support. It really does mean the world to me.

Poppy x