Kettering community champion Trish raises vital cash by braving the shave

A Kettering supermarket worker who braved the shave has handed over a cheque for more than £1,700 to charity.

Trish Beal, the community champion at the town's Morrisons in Lower Street, had her bob shaved off in the staff canteen in a Facebook-streamed event on September 19 this year.

With Morrisons Foundation match funding she raised a total of £1,730 for the supermarket's national charity partner, children's cancer charity CLIC Sargent.

And on Friday (December 11) she was able to present a big cheque to the charity at the supermarket alongside store manager Ben White.

Trish, 51, said: "Because of Covid we've had to think outside the box for fundraising this year - normally we would hold lots of events but we can't do that.

"I had a bob and I was a bit nervous but I knew it would be nothing compared to the suffering from cancer that the children CLIC Sargent help have to go through.

"I would do it again in a heartbeat. It was actually quite cathartic having it shaved off.

"I quite like it. I'm going to keep it shaved at the sides, I think."

Since Covid-19 started CLIC Sargent has handed out £200,000 in hardship grants to families affected by children's cancer, as well as running their 'home from home' service which provides free accommodation for young cancer patients and their families during their treatment

And it's thanks to fundraising efforts from people like Trish that they are able to do so.

Grace Mincher, CLIC Sargent's fundraising engagement manager for the East Midlands, visited the store to receive the cheque.

She said: "We are so grateful for the efforts of people like Trish for raising so much money.

"It goes such a long way to helping people at the hardest times of their lives."

Presenting the cheque is the latest community-spirited gesture Trish has been able to do since the Covid pandemic started.

Every day during the crisis she has been able to give food from the store to Kettering's Corona Kitchen, which has been feeding the town's vulnerable.

The store has also been able to support the KCU food bank, the Kettering Food Bank, The Shack Food Project and the Highfield food bank, as well as donating fruit, vegetables and water to Grange Primary Academy in Kettering.

Trish, who has worked for Morrisons for five years, added that she is proud to work for them, particularly because they were the first supermarket to do a doorstep delivery for the vulnerable and elderly during the Covid crisis, with shoppers simply calling a phone number,

The scheme - which sees the items delivered to your doorstep the next day for no delivery charge - was later extended for students and is still going now.

To use it, call 0345 611 6111 and select option five.