KIRKLEES Council is looking for ways it can offer a "safe haven" to refugees.

Cabinet member, Councillor Erin Hill (pictured), who is responsible for family support and child protection, said people were escaping places where "war, hunger, absolute poverty and fear are constant".

She said: "Many refugees have seen parents, siblings and children die in front of them, either as a result of conditions and atrocities in their homeland, or of the difficult journey to Europe.

"This is not a debate about open door immigration.

"It is about us providing a home – as Britain has done in the past - to desperate refugees. People don’t undertake such incredibly dangerous journeys to Europe unless they have absolutely no other option.

"Kirklees is committed wholeheartedly to supporting these efforts. We are currently looking at practical ways we can assist with this crisis.

"There will be a point where, perhaps through the Local Government Association, we have to ask government for help with the costs, but that time is not right now.

"Our efforts now must be to offer the safe haven these desperate families need."