Dream comes true for River

The youngster has two rare skin conditions which prevent her follicles from working properly and this in turn affects her skin and body temperature.

All she wanted from the man in red was some hair on her head and she was grinning from ear to ear when her dreams came true.

Her family and friends sprung into action to find a wig maker and started an online fundraising appeal to help cover the costs of a set of wigs for every season.

Her mother Kirsty Bryan, 29, the smile on River's face was worth every penny when she saw the hair pieces laid out on her dressing table for the first time.

Elsa

Miss Bryan, of Brindleyford, Brookside, in Telford, explains: "I asked her what she fancied for Christmas and she said some Princess Elsa hair just like the character in the animation film Frozen. So I said that we'd ask Father Christmas.

"I just cried my eyes out when she came out with that. I searched on social media and found Karley's Angels salon in the Stoke area that agreed to make them.

"River can't grow hair because her skin is too thick for it to grow through. When she was born she was diagnosed with the genetic condition ichthyosis, then in July this year she was also diagnosed with ectodermal dystalsia which affects hair, teeth, nails and sweat glands.

"It means her body has difficulty regulating its own temperature and she has to be moisturised between 10 to 20 times a day to help ease the itching and discomfort. We also have appointments at Birmingham Children's and Royal Shrewsbury hospitals and she has to wear special suits," the mother of four says.

The appeal has so far attracted more than £500 in donations to kit her out with five wigs of various hairstyles and as she grows taller she will need replacements.

Ride

Appeal supporter Chris Jones, of The Rock, Telford, was due to set off on a 100-mile bike ride from Telford to Barmouth to help boost the fund after hearing about River.

“I heard about River through a friend of the family who was telling us the story. I was told that all she asked her mom for, for Christmas, was hair.

“That really tugged at my heartstrings as the father of a little girl myself," Mr Jones, 27, said.