Sensory-Friendly Haircuts: Turning Stress into Success

A barber shares his commitment to serving the community by making haircuts a better experience for children with additional needs.

The loud buzz of the clippers, the strong scent of products, the scrape of the comb- all part of getting a haircut. As a hair professional, I feel everyone deserves to look and feel their best. However, a trip to the salon can be overwhelming for people with sensory processing difficulties.

I’ve been using the days my shop is closed to go into the community and visit a specialist nursery and secondary school that works with children and young adults with additional needs. Most of the children have nonverbal autism. I spend my time helping to get the children and young adults desensitized to the experience of getting their hair cut in a comfortable setting where they feel safe.

Sensory aspects of a haircut

I’ve been working on the sensory aspects of the experience at each visit. This involves spending time getting them used to the equipment, touching the combs and brushes, feeling the water spray mist, and getting familiar with the vibrations of the clippers.

When I perform the haircut, it’s all about being patient. It can be a sensory overload for the children, so I make sure to take time with each child and wait when needed, as each child has a different way of processing the experience.

Stress-free as possible

I aim to make this stress-free for them, whether this involves me taking one hour or even four if it helps the child to build up an understanding of the experience of getting a haircut. I want them to feel that they had a complete experience without being judged or discriminated against because of their additional needs. Hair salons are part of the community, and we should serve the community that includes these amazing human beings.

A parent of one of the children I work with described taking their four-year-old son to another barber for his first haircut after lockdown as “awful and traumatic.” Now, having her son in calm, respectful hands is a huge relief.

Something special

I’ve had the privilege of working with around 100 children and young adults so far. Being able to make such a difference to them and their parents is amazing.

I feel like I’ve achieved something special: making these children look fantastic while helping to build their confidence with hair professionals. The time they have spent together will make it easier for each child, as well as help their parents not suffer from stress and anxiety worrying that their child is going to be judged on visits to a salon in the future.

A lot of the children I have worked with in these settings now visit the barbershop that I run with my partner, Sarah Timmins. I’ve set up a small sensory corner that is not too overwhelming and a chalkboard wall to help them with literacy skills.

I run a small shoebox salon with Sarah called Craig’s Barber Shop. We run the salon entirely by appointment. This eliminates any need to interrupt customers with additional needs during their allotted time, and in turn, prevents them from being overstimulated. I’m the only member of staff in the shop, so that helps massively also.

I’m aware that not a lot of them will always be okay on the first visit, but parents or guardians need to remember that getting them into a shop is already a huge win – even if all I manage to do is comb their hair or even just get into their personal space and play with their hair.

It all takes time and patience. A haircut is not a sprint, it’s a marathon.

Future plans

Looking ahead, I’ve got plans to not only keep up this service, but I’m working on PEC cards, a children’s book in the future to explain the process, and a training program for hair professionals to be able to understand and accommodate these fantastic humans with additional needs.