A BIG-hearted teenager is presenting a cheque for more than £1,600 to the hospital that gave her young cousin the priceless gift of life.

Charlie Toothill, a student at Northallerton College, agreed to have her head shaved at a barbecue last year to raise cash for the heart unit at Newcastle's Freeman Hospital.

She had hoped to raise about £1,000 in sponsorship, but in the end she surpassed her wildest hopes by raising a total of £1,639.

Her cousin Sophie underwent a life-saving heart transplant at the Freeman in 1998 after contracting the viral infection cardiomyopathy.

"Fortunately a heart became available in time," said Barbara Foster, the mother of the now healthy four-year-old, who lives in Romanby, Northallerton.

Charlie, who is the chairman of the student charity committee at the college, said she felt strange when she lost her crowning glory - which has now grown back to its full length.

She said: "It was a fairly close shave for Sophie for getting a new heart - so I felt I had to do it, and I'm glad."