Kingston Council has been urged to join a campaign which would see 50 refugees fleeing war-torn Syria rehomed in the borough.

Faith leaders met with council leader Kevin Davis on Saturday, and asked him to sign Kingston up to a new campaign in support of refugees living in United Nations (UN) camps.

The campaign, led by Citizens UK, hopes to persuade 15 London boroughs to offer sanctuary to 50 Syrian people and double the number of refugees resettling in the UK from 750 to 1,500.

Councillor Davis said: "I was happy to think about how we could back this.

"Could Kingston house 50 people? Probably not because we don’t have the housing. Would it be fair to put them in bed and breakfast? I’m not sure.

"But I am sure there is some way between us and the voluntary sector and other organisations that work in the borough to take a few more refugees."

The group, led by Rabbi Charley Baginsky from Kingston Liberal Synagogue, built a temporary shelter in the middle of Kingston’s Clarence Street as a symbolic gesture for the campaign during the Jewish festival of Sukkot on Saturday.

Danny Rich, member of Citizens UK and chief executive of Liberal Judaism, said: "This isn’t about an open door immigration policy. It’s about helping some of the most vulnerable refugees and supporting them to safety."

Surrey Comet:

Kevin Davis with campaigners at Saturday's rally 

Surrey Comet:

Bishops, Imams and Rabbis came together to call for more help for Syrian refugees

The campaign comes off the back of UN calls to help resettle refugees and relieve the pressures on neighbouring countries already supporting more than 2m displaced people.

Councillor Liz Green, leader of the Liberal Democrat opposition, said: "I support helping Syrian refugees - that goes without saying. But I am interested in how it would work.

"We don’t have large numbers of empty properties like some other London boroughs do."

Each borough that signs up to the campaign will receive support from a UN refugee resettlement scheme funded by the European Union.