More than half the off-licences targeted in an undercover operation sold alcohol to under-18s.

Child investigators aged 13 to 15 were sent to stores across Brighton and Hove to make test purchases.

Off-licence and store chains were the worst offenders - they sold drink to the youngsters 20 times in 35 attempts.

Supermarkets sold drink twice in five tests, garage forecourt shops one in three and independent stores eight times in 29 attempts.

Some of the youngsters, the children of Sussex Police officers, were wearing their dental braces when they took bottles to the tills.

They were enlisted by Brighton and Hove trading standards in a crackdown on stores.

The Co-op has received two official cautions from trading standards as a result of the tests.

The chain has now banned branches in Woodingdean and Rottingdean, Brighton, from selling alcohol from 4pm Thursday through to Saturday for the next six weeks.

The Co-op said "regrettable errors of judgement" by staff led to sales to under 18s but insisted there were many occasions when minors were refused.

A spokeswoman said teenagers often looked a lot older but assistants usually asked customers who appeared under 21 to show some proof of their age.

The Co-op, she said, was working fully with trading standards and Sussex Police in combating under-age drinking. Ray Moore, principal trading standards officer, said he was disappointed with many stores.

He said: "We have been talking to them for a long time about the problems and they have come up with various systems to prevent sales to minors. But they have patently failed."

Many outlets, he said, were "sloppy" in their approach to selling drink. Stores were often busy and many employed young teenagers who were not properly supervised.

He said: "Many of the assistants are teenagers and there is a lot of peer pressure on them from other youngsters in the community."

He said many assistants ignored till prompts advising them to check for proof of age.

He said: "Some assistants did not even look up from their tills to see who was buying the drink."

Recent changes in the 1964 Licensing Act now allow agencies to use youngsters to test stores and Mr Moore said more undercover operations would be carried out. Ultimately, he said, offending outlets could face court prosecutions and have their licences revoked.

Sussex Police see under-age drinking as a major cause of juvenile delinquency on city estates.

Inspector Steve Curry said the police and city council were working in partnership to tackle the problem.

Trading standards next month will launch a poster campaign on city buses, warning under-age youngsters against buying booze and cigarettes.

Tuesday October 21, 2003