Cole Kpekawa insists he is not looking to move away from Oakwell in the summer and wants to fight for a place in the Reds team that he has not been part of since October.

The defender, who turns 21 next month, signed a three-year deal in August after Barnsley paid a reported £450,000 to Queens Park Rangers.

The former England youth player made four starts and three substitute appearances, setting up goals against Leeds United and Aston Villa, but has not played since the 2-0 home loss to Newcastle United on October 18 while he has not been in the matchday squad since Boxing Day.

He has been playing and often training with the under 23s while academy player Will Smith was chosen ahead of him for the bench at Bristol City on Saturday.

Kpekawa told the Chronicle: "I haven't played as much as I would have liked, due to a lot of different things. It's mainly just a case of working hard, improving myself and seeing how things go. The manager has told me what he wants me to do but it's down to me to work harder and show him what I've got.

"I thought I played OK when I played, some games better than others.  But I am still young for a defender and I just need to learn and improve. Hopefully next season will be better for me.

"I am looking to stay and prove myself at Barnsley. I definitely want to play here next season."

Kpekawa – who mainly played left-back for the Reds but prefers centre-back – has been impressed by the team's mid-table season after being one of the favourites to be relegated when he arrived.

"It's been a very good season.  The whole team and the staff have done very well to adapt to the Championship. We have been underdogs all season but we have proved a lot of people wrong. We haven't got many big names or superstars but we're a very good team. Everyone knows their job and we're hard-working."

Kpekawa was speaking to the Chronicle at Oakhill Primary School in Stairfoot where local teenagers, as part of their National Citizens Service, are working to transform a caretaker's home into a centre for the school and the community. He said: "It's very good that the community has come together to do this project.  It's good that the club gets involved and helps, especially in a place like Barnsley where the football club is so important to the community.

"It's a pleasure for me to come down and meet these people and hopefully the young kids liked seeing a player from Barnsley. When I was a kid, I would have loved that."