The owner of a barbers in Cumbria says he has had his faith in humanity restored after a stranger's incredible act of kindness. 

Gary Sommerville owns The Lad Barber in Egremont and had a nightmare end to 2023 when someone attempted to break in during the night on December 30. 

Police were informed but so far any attempts to find the individual have proved unsuccessful. 

While the individual was unsuccessful with their break-in attempt, they did cause a lot of damage to the front door, which would have set the business back a significant amount in replacing the locks and handle.

Fortunately, Ben Ferguson, a joiner from Whitehaven, saw the post and offered to come and fix the locks on the front door.

Despite having never visited The Lad Barber, or even knowing owner Gary, Ben completed the job and left without charging them, even turning down the offer of a free haircut. 

In an interview with the News and Star, Gary said: "A lot of people messaged the page after the break in. Ben messaged the page saying 'I've seen what happened, I've got spare locks and handles if you want me to come and fix it.'

"Next thing I knew, he was on his way to Egremont. He messaged me saying I was done and he said let the girls know how much you want and they will sort it. I phoned the girls afterwards and asked how much he wanted, and they said he wouldn't take anything. I messaged him and he said knows how hard things can be at this time of year, and wanted to help."

Gary hopes most that Ben gets the credit he deserves for his act of kindness.

He added: "The fact that he doesn't even come to the shop and he's an absolute stranger has restored my faith in humanity. It's amazing and it saved us a fortune, rather than hiring an emergency locksmith.

"I hope that someone reads this and sees that he's an amazing joiner and decides to hire him, then that would be brilliant. That's the main thing."