A BRAVE Worcester girl is to receive an award for the courage she has shown while recovering from a life-threatening collision with a car.

McAyla Johnston will be honoured with the Sheer Courage gong at the 36th Woman’s Own Children of Courage Awards in front of a star-studded audience, in-cluding celebrities from Strictly Come Dancing and X-Factor, as well as some of Britain’s favourite faces from the world of music and television.

The ceremony, which will celebrate the courage youngsters aged between five and 15 have shown in the face of hardship, or who have performed a selfless act, will take place at Westminster Abbey, London, on Wednes-day, December 9, following a visit to Number 10 Downing Street.

After McAyla, of Foxwell Street, off London Road, has picked up the award, for which she was nominated by a friend’s parent, she will attend a special reception at the House of Lords along with all the other winners.

Her dad David Lamb said: “I have gone past the sense of being proud. No words can describe how I feel.

“I think it will be a very emotional ceremony for me.

“The last year or so has been from hell and heaven at the same time. So many different people have helped along the way and I think this award is probably for everybody – McAyla won’t think she has done anything abnormal.

“This shows how far she has come along in such a short space of time and that will hopefully keep her going forward.”

We previously reported in your Worcester News how McAyala was knocked down by a car on London Road while trying to get to the Tesco Express store on Sunday, September 7, last year – the day before she was due to start secondary school.

The accident left McAyla in a critical condition with her family fearing for her life.

Although she has made a miraculous recovery since – she has returned to Nunnery Wood High School on a part-time basis – she still suffers from symptoms related to brain injury, such as memory loss, and has to walk with the aid of a stick.

However, with the help of her family, friends and members of the public, she has helped to successfully campaign for the installation of new £70,000 crossings at the busy junction of London Road, Wyld’s Lane and Sebright Avenue.

They were unveiled just days before the first anniversary of the accident.

The stories of McAyla and the other award winners can be seen in the Woman’s Own Christmas bumper issue, which goes on sale from today.