Brighton and Hove has achieved Government targets by scrapping all infant school classes of 30 or more by the start of the current school year.

Ministers announced yesterday the city was among the local education authorities where no five to seven year olds were in oversized classes.

But East and West Sussex County Councils failed to reach the target, imposed when Labour was elected in 1997.

These councils are to be taken to task by Education Secretary Estelle Morris to agree ways in which they can meet the limit.

In East Sussex 125 pupils are being taught in classes of 30 or more, 0.9 per cent of the total.

West Sussex has 130 pupils in overcrowded classes, 0.6 per cent of the total.

Ms Morris said: "The figures show just 0.1 per cent of all infant classes nationally appear to be in breach of the limit.

"We are following these classes up with the local education authorities concerned to agree ways in which they can meet the limit."

However, she praised the efforts which have been made to cut class sizes.

She said: "Reducing infant class sizes has been a key priority for this Government and we have seen a remarkable improvement over the last few years.

"Smaller classes allow teachers to spend more time with individual pupils in those vital early years when they need to acquire basic skills."

Across England, there were 440,979 infants in oversized classes in January 1996, compared with just 8,000 now.