- Paige Harker, 16, nearly dropped out of school after bullies verbally abused her, tripped her up and kicked her
- Mother Hayley persuaded her to stay with promise of an 'amazing' prom
- As well as her £240 gown and £600 carriage, she spent £100 on shoes and jewellery, £45 on eyelash extensions and £25 on a spray tan
A mother splashed out more than £1,000 on giving her daughter the prom night of her dreams after she endured 'five years of hell' at the hands of school bullies.
Hairdresser Hayley Harker, from Telford, was so determined to ensure Paige, 16, had the night she deserved she spent hundreds of pounds on a custom-made gown for her daughter that had to be flown in from China.
Ms Harker even hired the same horse-drawn carriage used by Katie Price on the day of her wedding to Peter Andre to whisk Paige to the party on her special night.
Devoted: Hayley Harker splashed out £1,000 to make her daughter's prom night perfect, after Paige endured years of bullying at school where she was verbally abused, kicked and tripped up
Cinderella moment: Ms Harker even hired the £600 horse-drawn carriage used by Katie Price on the day she married Peter Andre to take Paige to the prom - pulled by two horses
Ms Harker also ensured the horses wore plumes of blue feathers that perfectly matched the shade of Paige's £240 dress.
The single mother-of-two said: 'We had been counting down for about a year for Paige’s prom because it marked the end of five years of hell. The night was a chance for her to say goodbye to her school for good.'
The hairdresser said her long-suffering daughter had been on the verge of dropping out of school before she finished, but that she managed to persuade her to stay with the promise of an 'amazing' prom.
True to her word, Ms Harker spared no expense on her daughter's special night, splashing out £100 on shoes and jewellery to match her blue dress, along with £45 for eyelash extensions and £25 for a spray tan.
'I had sleepless nights on the run up to the prom - I was so worried about everything running smoothly,' Ms Harker said.
'Sleepless nights': Ms Harker, seen with her daughter at their home in Telford, said the promise of a special prom night helped to give her daughter the strength to remain in school
Celebration: Paige wore a custom-made royal blue gown to her prom, which her mother said marked the end of 'five years of hell' for her daughter
'I just wanted Paige to have what she wanted, she deserved it and I had promised her all year she could have an amazing prom - no expense spared,' she said.
Paige's ordeal began when she first started secondary school, and turned into a five year campaign of bullying that saw her verbally abused, tripped up and kicked on a daily basis.
'NO EXPENSE SPARED': PRICE OF PAIGE'S PERFECT PROM NIGHT
- Acrylic French manicure £25
- Eyelash extensions £45
- Spray tan £25
- Custom-made dress £240
- Accessories £100
- Katie Price's carriage £600
Total: £1,035
The teenager said: 'I hated school, it was a constant struggle. I was called names and people even tried to push me down a flight of stairs. It was horrible.
'I had the best time and I am so grateful that my mum paid so much for my prom. It was the night that I dreamed of.'
The bullying started when Paige was in Year 7 and had a row with a classmate over online messaging site MSN Messenger.
Ms Harker tried to keep the peace, but rumours started circulating and Paige found herself increasingly isolated.
Ms Harker said: 'She had such a awful time at school, she really hated going, but I didn’t want her to drop out, so I decided to try and convince her to stay with the promise of an amazing prom.
'I had the dress made for her six months before, as an incentive for Paige to stay in school.'
Paige said: 'We spent ages choosing the right material, and once we found it we sent off a sample to a company in China, where they used my measurements to make me an original dress, which no-one else would have. It was a perfect fit.'
The strapless blue dress had eight hoops sewn into the lining of the skirt to give it extra impact.
'It was amazing, but so heavy. I was exhausted by the end of the night. Most other people had straight up and down dresses but mine was really big, and really stood out - I loved it,' the teenager said.
'The night I dreamed of': Paige, 16, says she is 'so grateful' to her mother for helping to make her night special
'No expense spared': Single mother Ms Harker, from Telford, said she had promised her daughter the 'amazing' prom night she deserved and even organised for her blue dress to be hand-made in China
'They even managed to match the feathers on the horses’ heads, which pulled my carriage, to the same royal blue as my dress, it was perfect.
'The carriages were different prices for black and white, but I had the exact same one as Katie Price had, the company bought it two days after her wedding. It was expensive but I knew it would be amazing.
'The carriage arrived early and all the neighbours came out to have a look and take pictures. When we drove through town, everyone’s heads were turning. It was like being a celebrity.
'On the day, the carriage arrived early and when I went outside all the neighbours had come out of their houses and gathered around to look and kids were asking for photos,' said Paige.
Dream come true: Paige was whisked to her prom in the same horse-drawn carriage Katie Price travelled in on the day she married Peter Andre
Ms Harker has another daughter, four-year-old Miley, who also had a new outfit for her sister’s prom and rode in the carriage with Paige on the 30-minute journey through the town.
Paige said: 'Miley will want just as big a prom as me, although she is a bit of a tomboy so probably won’t have the carriage.
'Me and my mum are very close, I tell her everything, we are the best of friends. She has really helped to fight my corner.'
Ms Harker said the bullying became so bad at one stage her daughter missed a month of school.
'Paige’s face flared up with stress acne and she didn’t want anyone to see her,' she said.
'She was so distressed she took a month off school and in the end I had to pay £2,000 for a maths tutor because she fell behind.'
'Worth it': Ms Harker, left with her daughter Paige, said she was 'welling up' as she watched her daughter leave for her prom in all her finery
But she said of her daughter's prom night: 'It was all worth it to see her dressed up and happy. I was welling up.'
Paige said: 'I am relieved to be finally leaving and looking forward to starting beauty college in September.'
Her mother added: 'She was almost not going to go to college because of the bullies. She was prepared to sacrifice her career.
'But now she has had her perfect prom and closed that door, I am so pleased she is looking forward to the future and happy I could give her the prom she wanted, it was worth all the money.'
No comments:
Post a Comment