The owner of a Limerick hair salon has said he will this week begin providing “essential haircuts” to people with certain conditions at his premises, despite a prohibition on salons opening during current Level-5 restrictions.

Niall Colgan, owner of Niall Colgan Hairdressing, O’Callaghan Strand, Limerick also suggested the Health Service Executive look into providing “a medical unit to provide a controlled environment” to allow certain people to receive what he called “essential haircuts” by a qualified hairdresser during lockdown.

“Report me, or jail me, or stop me, or whatever you want to do, but there are, in some instances, hairdressing services which we deem essential and they need to take place now,” he said in a video, posted to his thousands of social media followers on Facebook and Instagram.

Hospital Report

He has “stuck religiously to every single guideline” since March 2020, he said, but was “returning to the salon this week to do a few haircuts on clients that I am deeming essential”.

I go in to the scan and, it turns out, I do miss my husband

---

Self-doubt, isolation: The reality of remote learning for first-year college students

---

EMA says AstraZeneca benefits outweigh risks as more countries halt use

---

St Patrick’s Day: Virtual events taking place at home and abroad

---

Mental health

When asked if he was advocating for hair salons to be included as an essential service during the pandemic, the hair stylist replied: “No, I’m not. This pandemic is very, very, serious and these strains are very serious, and we are following all of the guidelines given to us by the Government.”

Mr Colgan argued that “a small” number of clients – who have specific health conditions impacting their hair and their mental health – should be allowed “essential haircuts” at his salon.

He said he did not intend to open his premises to the general public, but would provide “private appointments” at his salon to clients suffering with conditions, including trichotillomania, alopecia, as well as those who have been impacted by chemotherapy.

Salon closures 

"I consider this to be essential and I'm not going to charge a fee to anyone, this is going to be complimentary," Mr Colgan said.
"I certainly don't think salons should be open, I think all salons should be closed, the [Covid case] numbers are too high and too scary, but I'm trying to provide a haircut to a very small amount of people who are in need of this service essentially."

Mr Colgan said during these private appointments, only he and the client would be in the salon therefore avoiding the potential for large numbers gathering at his premises, and he would follow all guidelines around washing hands, wearing face masks and using hand sanitiser.

“There’s no masterplan, this is just about highlighting the fact that there are people out there that essentially need their hair done. It’s as simple as that,” he said.