A vegan hairdresser has transformed the front room of her Barming home into a salon that uses cruelty-free, animal-friendly products.

Nichola Alderson, 43, has launched Paladin Hair & Beauty after working as a mobile stylist for the last 18 months.

She became a vegan three years ago after seeing a Facebook post of a cow being reunited with her calf.

Now Mrs Alderson has decided to interweave her ethical values with her work by using only products friendly to animals and the environment in her business.

These include shampoo from Organic Colour Systems, which is against animal-testing and which uses high-grade organic, natural ingredients, and Tropic skin care, a company backed by Alan Sugar.

The Tonbridge Road beautician said: “Greener beauty is the direction everyone is heading.

"It is kinder to your skin as well as being kinder to the environment.”

A growing number of requests for additional services such as waxing and lash tints from her clients made Mrs Alderson realise creating a permanent base was a natural, logical step for her skills.

"It is kinder to your skin as well as being kinder to the environment" - Nichola Alderson

The couple decided it was worth sacrificing their reception room for Mrs Alderson’s career to progress.

The room has been split into two; one section for hair and the other for a range of new eco-friendly beauty treatments.

Last month’s launch was a success, with a mix of new and old customers enjoying the vegan cakes and booking future pampering sessions.

Mrs Alderson said: “Historically, it has been hard to source vegan services but I qualified over the summer in waxing, threading, lash lifts and tints, brow tints and shaping and am now working towards doing nails.”

Vegan beauty products do not include fatty acids, beeswax, gelatin or other animal-derived ingredients which many of the big brands use.

• To find out more about the salon see search ‘Paladin Hair and Beauty - By Appointment Only’ on Facebook.