MORE than 1,600 people have signed a petition pressing for the council to provide a night shelter for the homeless.

The online petition has been launched by campaigner Kimberley Peake who is calling for a suitable building that can be turned into a night shelter for the homeless and run by volunteers.

Kimberley, of Wombwell, set up the petition on behalf of the pressure group she helps run called Stamp Out Homelessness in South Yorkshire which campaigns for a better deal for the homeless and also distributes care packages, warm clothes and sleeping bags.

The group’s call for a night shelter follows similar calls for action in 2015 when it petitioned the council to open up an empty shop or office a few nights a week for emergency accommodation.

Kimberley, 30, said a shelter would get the homeless off the streets and out of doorways, give them a safe haven, and prevent illness.

Read more in this weeks Barnsley Chronicle