Friday 1 April 2022

A seven-year-old from Beverley is planning to have his hair cut off for charity to fulfil the wish of his friend who was planning a similar gesture before his tragic death following a collision with a car near his home in Molescroft. Fifteen-year-old Riley Ketley had grown his hair in order to have it cut and donated to the Little Princess Trust, with funds raised going to the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit at the Hull Women and Children’s Hospital in memory of his baby cousins, who had sadly died.

Now, seven-year-old Jack Jowett has decided to donate his hair to the same cause and will be having it cut off a year to the day his friend died. The event, which takes place at the Moulders Arms in Beverley on Saturday April 9, has already created a real buzz locally, with the whole community supporting Jack’s efforts.

Lisa Whitton, of the charity Wishh, which supports Hull hospitals, told Beverley FM: “Riley was a 15-year-old who inspired all those he met with his kind and generous nature.” And she said that when Jack was asked why he was cutting his hair he’d replied: “I’m doing it for charity and for Riley to fulfil his wishes”.

[CAPTION: Jack and Riley]

With certain exceptions, the availability of free lateral flow tests ended today. But the decision has led to concerns from the nurses’ trade union. Sarah Dodsworth, from the Royal College of Nursing in Yorkshire, said: “Covid is rising. We’ve got more staff off sick than ever before. Hospitals are still a place where you’re more likely to catch Covid than ever before, let alone the impact on the independent sector by which I mean nursing homes and the impact on families who would be visiting and paying to visit relatives.”

She continued: “I think many people won’t be able to afford to pay for the tests so they’ll have no choice but to risk it.”