Clubbers have hailed Brighton's bouncers as the friendliest door staff in England and Wales.

Bouncers as a breed may have an image of being granite-jawed bruisers only too happy to turf an unruly reveller out on to the streets but industry insiders insist they are becoming more aware of the need to present a friendly face, rather than a surly snarl.

And a nationwide poll of 1,000 clubbers revealed only bouncers in Edinburgh and Glasgow were seen as more pleasant than those in Brighton.

London had the most intimidating bouncers, followed by Newcastle and Manchester.

Aggrieved trouble-makers thrown out of the city's nightlife hotspots may disagree but the boost for Brighton's bouncers came as no surprise to Steve Swain.

Mr Swain, 26, works as a training manager for Brighton-based Security Corps, which has about 100 doormen on its books working at venues across the city.

Mr Swain, who has worked at many of the city's pubs and clubs, said: "Things have changed a heck of a lot. They are no longer just gorillas in a penguin suit.

"We are called door supervisors now because it shows it is a profession rather than just a job.

"A bouncer is someone who is just employed so that if there is trouble, they go in and drag them out.

"As a door supervisor you are there for the licensee, vetting the people and making sure they are suitable for the venue, especially in Brighton where you get so many different types of places.

"We get a lot of people from London who say we are really friendly."

Mr Swain, who became a door supervisor nine years ago but now spends a lot of his time training other staff, said there was a big emphasis on customer service.

He said: "We make sure if they have customers asking them questions they are able to answer them, whether it be about where to find the cigarette machine or the nearest bus stop.

"It's all about diplomacy and communication skills. One of the things I get my staff to do is to say hello to people going in. Aside from customer service, it gives you more of an opportunity to judge what someone is like."

Mr Swain, like many door supervisors, welcomes Government moves to properly licence door staff.

Currently door supervisors have to get a certificate from the local council but under proposed new laws, they will have to apply for licences from the newly-created Security Industry Authority.

That will involve extensive criminal and background checks as well as training in conflict management and communication skills.

Mark Eteen, 33, one of Security Corps's company directors, said: "The industry is changing very rapidly. Years ago you did have to be able to stand up on your own two feet.

"Often no one would press charges and there were no police cameras so people misbehaved and there was a bad element who didn't know when to stop. There are still a few around but the SIA will probably get rid of them.

"What we try and do is make sure people communicate.

"We try to lead by example and talk to people. You are always going to have a bad element but I would like to think our staff will always try and go for that option."