my 1 year old(just) was noticed to be crabbing by a friend while i was showing her going straight up and down
She does move rather fast at the moment  which i am trying to work on at the moment
Is it common for youngsters to do this and is there anything i can do to correct this

Yes, as they tend to want to move faster than you and away from you.

One way is to move the dog on the right of you (wrong side) for up and down, and also to turn them to your right.  As they will be anticipating the right turn each time they will be likely to selt correct.

Which side does she crab to? Is it always the same side or does it vary according to which side you have her?

Can you walk them near a wall (not pinned against it obviously!) Just near enough to discourage them from moving outwards?

asked my friend which way she was crabbing and she had her head turned in to me obviously she was on my left and was looking up to me, i know she,s young and is saying to me look mum are,nt i a GOOD GIRL,  but i dont want her to get in the habit of doing this

Only my opinion of course, but unless this turns out to be a temporary behavioral thing then i believe crabbing is caused by the dogs structure. Usually there is stronger rear angulation then in the front so the increased power pushes the front end offline because it doesn't have the same reach as the rear. Or the other way around.

> she had her head turned in to me

Then the way to get past this one (I wish mine turned in to me insted of wanting to get waaayyy ahead, or chase the dog in front, LOL) is to get in front of her and look back toward her.

>obviously she was on my left and was looking up to me

When I asked which side does she crab, I meant do her hind feet go to the left or the right of her front feet, as well as which side of you she's on; obviously she needs to be taught to move on both sides of you as a judge, standing onone side of the ring to assess her side action, will need her to be on your left hand side in one direction and your right hand side in the other. You always need to keep your dog between you and the judge's view!

It's not unusual to have a dog whose hind feet crab to one side when on your left and to the other side when on your right!

You're correct mcat, often exacerbated by a body that is too short for the angulation and/or length of leg.  Sometimes in a youngster it can be a habit.  We've had dogs that crabbed for both reasons.  My breed calls for square, but the outline should not be foreshortened.  Dogs that are too short in the back for their length of leg find creative ways of keeping their legs from interfering with each other on the move, whether by driving upwards instead of forwards or "sidewinding"!