A church minister is making a fresh appeal to the Home Office not to deport a teenager who has lived in Scotland since he was three.

Giorgi Kakava, now 13, faces being sent back to Georgia, the country of his birth, after his residence permit expired in December. 

He was brought to the UK as a young child by his mother, an asylum seeker who feared that the gangsters her husband owed money to would either kill him or sell him to sex traffickers.

She passed away in 2018 while awaiting the outcome of an appeal for asylum, leaving Giorgi in the care of his grandmother and legal guardian Ketino Baikhadze. 

Over 90,000 people have signed a petition asking that he be allowed to stay in Glasgow. 

Rev Brian Casey, minister of Springburn Parish Church, said it was a "scandal and a moral outrage" that Kakava was still living under a cloud of uncertainty.

His plea for "decency and compassion" comes as members of the Scottish Parliament prepare to vote on the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (Incorporation) (Scotland) Bill on Tuesday. 

Rev Casey said Kakava has "no memory" of Georgia and should be allowed to remain in his home in Glasgow. 

"The Home Office granted him and his grandmother residency permits for 30-months each but they have now expired and now we have a second-year high school pupil living on borrowed time, which is frankly horrendous," he said. 

"Jesus himself was a refugee and the Church stands with all those who have no home and who lack hope. We are called to hold those in power to account for their decisions and to show that there are human lives at stake.

"This is a human rights issue and I hope people will sign the petition and join me in urging Home Secretary Priti Patel to look at this case with compassion, decency and common sense." 

He added: "Despite having a very tough start to life, he has grown into a fine young man and I have been so inspired by his progress. He loves football, boxing and is good at maths and science.

"Giorgi is a delight to be around and I fully believe that if we support him now, he will become an asset to our country in the future."

Bruce Adamson, Children and Young People's Commissioner for Children, said: "Before decisions are made about a child's immigration and asylum status, their human rights and best interests must be at the heart of decision making.

"Decisions should take into account the impact on the full range of the child's human rights, including rights to an education, to respect for private and family life, and to mental health, as well as their ability to adjust to life in what is, to them, a foreign country.

"Where a child has spent the majority of their childhood in Scotland, it is unlikely to be in their best interests to return them to a country they have limited or no memory of."

Giorgi is being represented by immigration lawyer Andrew Bradley, who is preparing a new residence application for him and his grandmother.