Huanui College students Shave for a Cure to raise money for Leukaemia & Blood Cancer New Zealand

Competition was fierce at Huanui College as students and teachers battled it out in a bidding war.

They weren't buying art, or antiques, or any physical item - they were bidding on how much they were willing to donate to the 29 students and teachers who got rid of their locks for Shave for a Cure, a national fundraiser for Leukaemia & Blood Cancer New Zealand.

Huanui College English teacher Dan Opie was one of the first to get the chop on Thursday. It was a head-to-head bidding battle between colleagues and students keen to get their wallets out to see Opie's curly locks go.

"I thought I'd shave this off to show solidarity with the kids and the people that need a bit of help, and it was fundraising for the good cause," Opie said before the shave.

English teacher Dani Opie before the shave. Photo/Michael Cunningham

Opie had been growing his hair for about a year and said although he was a bit hesitant he wanted to go through with it anyway.

The first bid for Opie started off at $5 but a battle ensued between teacher and former principal Peter Ackers and Huanui College's founder Evan Hamlet, with Hamlet winning with a $100 bid.

Post-shave Opie said it felt "quite good".

"I'm super happy we raised a good amount of money. It's a bit of a cooler look I reckon."

English teacher Dan Opie after the shave - he kept the beard for warmth. Photo/Michael Cunningham

Student Leo Siafa appeared to have the longest hair of all the students shaving for a cure.

Despite growing his hair for about three years, the 14-year-old said it wasn't a hard decision to shave it all off.

"I'm doing Shave for a Cure to raise money to actually get a cure for cancer for those who have it," he said.

14-year-old Leo Siafa, who had grown his hair for three years, mid-shave. Photo/Michael Cunningham

The bidding for Leo's hair started at $10 with the final bid coming in at $91. After his hair was gone Leo couldn't stop touching his head.

"It feels weird, really weird."

Leo wasn't the only one rubbing his head. It was almost a guarantee that the Shave for a Cure participants would have their hands on their heads after the big shave.

Even their peers wanted to see how it felt.

"Let me caress the baldness," one student said as he ran over to a friend.

11-year-old Isobel Weir was the only female taking part in the shave. Photo/Michael Cunningham

About half an hour into the event it was time for the only female participant, 11-year-old Isobel Weir, to get her shoulder-length hair shaved off.

It was a teacher who bid $60 for Isobel's chop.

Isobel said she was only a little bit nervous.

"I did Shave for a Cure - for a cure - as my first reason, and my second reason was my hair was getting annoying in the morning," she said.

Isobel said this was the shortest her hair had ever been so it was weird not being able to feel it any more.

She said it felt "really nice" to be the only girl taking part.

"You feel like you've done something for a really good cause and you feel brave because no one else has done it."

The school had raised $2147.87 so far with more to be counted.