A Scottish children’s charity is vying to beat this year’s X-Factor winner to the Christmas Number 1 spot with the help of show reject, Gamu Nhengu.

The talented teenage singer from Tillicoultry has recorded a single in aid of children’s charity Aberlour called Where Will You Sleep this Christmas.

Now supporters of the charity and of Gamu, have launched a social media campaign in a bid to pick up the Christmas number one spot in the charts.

The Home Office, which had turned down a visa renewal application for Gamu’s family reversed that decision last week at a hearing in Glasgow. This means that the family have at least a temporary respite from being sent back to their native Zimbabwe.

The charity spent last weekend shooting a video with the young singer, who shot to fame earlier this year after being tipped as an early winner of this year’s X-Factor. Despite this she was not chosen by the judge Cheryl Cole to be one of the four girls to make it to the final.

Despite speculation that her immigration status impacted on Cole’s decision whether to put her through, the X-Factor has always maintained it was unaware of her status.

In October, Simon Cowell said that his lawyers were supporting the family’s bid to stay in Scotland, where they have lived for eight years.

Yet more than 250,000 fans signed up to a Facebook page called Gamu Should have Got  Through, in protest at the decision not to include her in the live shows.

Gamu recorded the single “Where Will You Sleep This Christmas?”, which was written by her former music teacher David Clifford, last year.

It features strings from The Cairn Quartet as well as the magical Starstruck Stage School choir from Glasgow.

Just over a week after the charity posted the song on YouTube, it has had been viewed almost 70,000 times.

Nearly 2,000 people are also fans of the song on Facebook.

With huge online support and strong press coverage, Aberlour is sure that this is going to be a great success.

Aberlour’s director of marketing, fundraising and external affairs, Karen McMurrich said:

“As a children’s charity we realise that Christmas can be an especially difficult time for children who are suffering neglect, abuse or family breakdown.

“Due to the extra demands placed on us at this time of the year, Christmas has always been a focus for our fundraising activity and Aberlour has traditionally produced a Christmas song for fundraising purposes.

“This song will hopefully appeal to a much larger audience this year and we are so grateful for the support of those who helped to make it happen.”

The proceeds from the single will help the charity to continue to support the 6000 vulnerable young people, children and their families they help every year.

Help the single get to number 1:

www.facebook.com/gamuforno1

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