Dog loving 17-year-old Faith Windsor from Crewe, Cheshire has won the Young Kennel Club (YKC) Young Person of the Year award at Crufts 2025 on Sunday 9 March.
Faith and her Autism Dog, Ember, a St Bernard, work together to educate and raise awareness of the work that Autism Dogs do, through school visits, at dog shows, and through speaking to members of the public when out and about. Ember is by Amber’s side throughout the day and helps to calm her down. Faith also has a fainting condition which impacts her daily life and Ember has learnt when an episode is coming so will make sure Faith is safe, and will help her following the episode as well as alerting Faith’s mum.
Proud Faith said: “I’m very happy, Ember helps me feel calm when I get stressed. She knows if I need her to get my mum, she helps me every day.”
The YKC Young Person of the Year award is one of the highest levels of achievement for young people who are passionate about dogs, and recognises those who are going above and beyond to help transform the lives of others, as well as encouraging their peers to make a difference with the help of their canine friends.
The YKC was inundated with nominations for the prestigious award which celebrates the hardworking, inspirational and selfless actions of young dog lovers. Each category winner was invited to Crufts 2025 for the award ceremony following a public vote to decide the overall YKC Young Person of the Year award.
The other category winners were:
Inspiration – Anastasiia Salo, aged 16, from Ukraine and now living in Berkshire
Teamwork – Genevieve Barrett, aged 24, from Somerset, and Emma Stock, aged 21, from Hampshire
Talent – Matthew Elmer, aged 23, from County Durham
Creative – Lilly O’Brien, aged 21, from Dumfries and Galloway
For 40 years, the Shaun McAlpine Trophy has been presented to the winner of the award at Crufts, in memory of Ed and Cindy McAlpine’s son who was tragically killed in a car accident aged 22. Shaun had himself achieved considerable success as a dog handler.
Previous winners of the competition have been selected for their volunteering and fundraising for dog charities, helping organise dog activities in the local community, and assisting others through training, stewarding and mentoring.
Helen Kerfoot, Crufts Show Manager, commented: “Congratulations to Faith for winning this year’s YKC Young Person of the Year award. She is a real credit to her friends, family and community, and we are so proud to have her as a Young Kennel Club member.
“Well done to all of our inspirational finalists and to all our deserving YKC members who were nominated this year. So much of their time, dedication and hard work is put into helping the lives of dogs, for which they should be commended.”
The category winners were each invited to Crufts 2025 on Sunday 9 March for a special presentation ceremony in the YKC ring. As well as being crowned YKC Young Person of the Year, The Kennel Club Educational Trust awarded Faith £350 to help progress her love of dogs, while the other three category winners were awarded £100.
If you would like to find out more about the Young Kennel Club and how to join please contact the YKC team by emailing
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