Shrewsbury High School pupil honoured with British Youth Citizen award
A pupil from Shrewsbury High School has been honoured with a British Youth Citizen Award (BCyA) for her fundraising work with animal charities.
Keira Mayhew, from Telford, is one of 22 young people named on the 2025 BCyA Roll of Honour and will receive the BCyA Medal of Honour at the Palace of Westminster on 30th October.
Keira is enthusiastic about supporting animal charities, raising £40,000 since she was eight years old. She regularly volunteers for Rainbow Rescue Telford, as well as fundraising for Jelly Exotics, Hilbrae Dog Rescue, Creature Comforts Rescue Centre, which is in North Wales and Cuan Wildlife Rescue.
She raised £3,000 for Creature Comforts, which was used to build an otter enclosure and dog pens. At the time of writing, this has helped save three otters and 80 dogs and puppies.
In addition, through her fundraising at Rainbow Rescue, Keira has helped rehabilitate hundreds of animals and has been relentless with her work, organising cake sales, bingo evenings, raffles and tombolas, as well as making her own craft items to sell.
She has also arranged community litter picking sessions, raised money for local food banks and made and delivered food parcels to those in need.
Keira is often seen at events with a smile on her face and is happy to talk to anyone and raise awareness of the good causes she supports.
Hoo Zoo and Dinosaur World, in Telford, saw Keira’s story and gifted her a family annual pass and a ‘Meet the Meerkats’ experience, which helped raise further awareness for Keira’s charities.
The BCyA Medal of Honour is presented only to a small number of young individuals and is viewed as the nation’s way of recognising everyday young people for the extraordinary, exceptional work they do.
Mike Faulkner, director of the BCyA, said: “We are delighted to be able to recognise these amazing individuals with a BCyA.
“It is both heartening and uplifting to know that so many young people are consciously contributing to causes such as the environment, climate change, education and creating awareness and fundraising for hospitals, medical research and charities.”
