Strangely, the boy has a fear of haircuts

A 12-year-old boy who has never had a haircut in his life and is said to have a fear of haircuts, was threatened with expulsion from his school because of his long hair.

According to Oddity Central (UK), Farouk James has impressive waist-length hair and that has brought him more than 250,000 followers on Instagram alone.

However, since starting school at his new school last September, he has been pressured to cut his long hair above his shirt collar according to school regulations.

Little boy Farouk James has impressively long hair. (Photo: OC).

Farouk's family sent the school doctor records showing that he suffered from barberphobia - an extreme fear of having his hair cut off . However, the school seems to have ignored that and still enforced the rule with Farouk.

'I have a fear of haircuts and sleep disorders. You may have terrible dreams about your hair being cut. But the teachers clearly don't believe that, they think it's just a reason, a front for him to continue to stay in school,' Farouk James told Sky News Kids' Show FYI.

Farouk's mother, Bonnie Miller, said that her son wore his hair in braids to comply with the rules, but that it was considered unacceptable and banned in London schools. Due to not complying with hair length regulations, the 12-year-old boy was kept at school after school many times, and could even be expelled.

'I was kept back at school after school because of my long hair. The first punishment was being detained at school for half an hour, then 1 hour, then increased to 2 hours. You could be suspended and eventually expelled ,' Farouk said.

Farouk's mother said she knew about the school's regulations before enrolling her son. But she thinks Farouk may be exempt from this rule for health reasons. Unfortunately, after the school year started, the principal announced that her son would be expelled if he did not cut his hair and they said that fear of haircuts is not considered a phobia.

'I'm trying to convince my son to cut his hair because Farouk loves this school and I really appreciate the educational environment here. My child is preparing for psychotherapy to overcome this phobia, we are really doing everything we can. Farouk even told me that if he had to cut his hair, his life wouldn't be worth living anymore. I really don't know what to do ,' Ms. Farouk said.

School administrators declined a request to comment on Farouk's case. They affirmed the need to respect confidentiality when mentioning issues related to school students.