A generous eight-year-old has said goodbye to her long locks to help children with cancer feel beautiful.

Dorchester youngster, Annabel Mortimer had 10 inches of her hair cut off on Tuesday so she could donate it to the Little Princess Trust.

The Little Princess Trust was launched in 2006 by the parents of Hannah Tarplee, who died aged five after being diagnosed as having a Wilms tumour.

The charity give away free real hair wigs to children that have lost their own hair through cancer treatment or other illnesses, to make the loss less traumatic.

Annabel's mum, Katherine Holmes said they began discussing donating Annabel's hair when she decided she wanted it shorter last year.

However, when she went to the hairdressers to have it cut she discovered it was not quite long enough to donate - the minimum length is seven inches.

The eight-year-old decided she would rather wait and keep growing her hair so that her new do could help someone else feel good.

Annabel said she felt a combination of nervous and very excited ahead of the big chop, a feeling she dubbed "nervicited".

"I feel really happy that I did it because I get to help people who don't have any hair," she said.

When she finally had her hair cut off she was able to donate 10 inches and she added she was pleased with how her new haircut had turned out.

According to the trust's website, hair of that length will be mixed with similar hair to create a short wig.

Annabel's mum, Katherine Holmes said she was incredibly proud of her daughter's kindness.

"I feel really proud that she wanted to do it for someone else. She was so excited to do it but that's Annabel - she's so sweet and caring," Mrs Holmes said.

To find out more about the Little Princess Trust visit www.littleprincesses.org.uk