The number of people sleeping rough in Brighton and Hove has risen in the past year, according to figures published today.

Council workers found 12 people sleeping on the streets on July 11, compared to nine in 2002.

The increase is the first recorded for several years. On the same night in 1998 there were 43 people sleeping on the street.

Brighton and Hove City Council said the rise was because of an influx of people to the city during the warmer weather.

Housing councillor Jack Hazelgrove said: "We are working hard to tackle homelessness in the city and we will continue to work to reduce the number of people sleeping rough on the streets."

The count was carried out for the council by the charity Crime Reduction Initiatives (CRI).

The council says the number of rough sleepers in Brighton and Hove has been declining over the last five years.

A homeless worker said the counts could be useful but felt the council should do more to get people into temporary accommodation.

He said: "Everyone accepts that a street count is a snapshot.

"Twelve is probably quite a reasonable number. I would have guessed between 15 and 20."

Mike Pattinson, director of services at CRI, said the problem of rough sleeping was not due to a housing shortage but other issues such as drugs or mental health.

He said: "Most of those sleeping on the streets have a long history of homelessness and rough sleeping and resist efforts to encourage them into accommodation.

"Most will have underlying issues such as substance misuse, mental health problems or learning difficulties, or may have experienced traumatic life events such as abuse."

Street counts are carried out quarterly in line with criteria set by the Government.