A BRAVE dentist is preparing to wave goodbye to her long locks as she attempts to raise £5,000 through a charity head shave.

Nicola Merriam, of Thirsk, is raising money for Macmillan Cancer Support following mother-in-law’s cancer diagnosis.

Mrs Merriam, a dentist at Pickering Dental Health Practice, sees countless people through her work and hopes that her shaven-head will prompt questions and help raise awareness.

She said: “I am quite nervous about what it is actually going to look like and I am doing it in quite a public way. My family want to be there when it happens and they might be a bit upset but although I am nervous, I’m also quite excited about it too.”

Mrs Merriam, 31, says she has never raised money for charity before and wanted to do something with maximum visibility.

“I am not a sporty person so I can’t do running or cycling for miles and I’m too scared to do skydive or anything like that,” she said.

“So I thought this (head shave) would be the easiest and most visible thing to do.

“Because I am a dentist I see a lot of people and they will probably ask why I have no hair and that will help raise awareness.”

Mrs Merriam will go under the scissors on April 26 at the Pickering Dental Health Practice.

You can find her fundraising page and make a donation at bravetheshave.org.uk