A young girl will be picking up her second national inspirational award in under a year this week.

Nikki Christou, of Station Road in Winchmore Hill, was diagnosed with arterio-venous malformation (AVM), which causes an abnormal connection between arteries and veins and can lead to serious bleeding around the face.

Three years on from her diagnosis, the nine-year-old has scooped the Diana Award for inspiring the lives of others.

Set up in honour of the late Diana, Princess of Wales, the award gives recognition to young people who are able to change the world.

Aged seven, Nikki set up her own charity, Butterfly AVM, to help raise money for research in the rare disease and has managed to collect more than £100,000.

Her father George said: "There are no words that can describe her, we have run out of superlatives. To have done what she has done at her age is nothing short of incredible.

After being nominated by her teachers and friends, Nikki will collect her award on Friday, February 28 and could potentially be reunited with Prince Harry, who presented her with the WellChild inspirational child award in September.

Mr Christou also told the Enfield Independent that thanks to her tireless hard work, progress is being made.

He said: “For the first time in Europe, Great Ormond Street and University College London have set up a research programme into AVM for three years, thanks to the funding from Nikki’s charity.”