Nurses, health workers and teachers will receive help in buying homes in the Lewes area.

But only 79 key workers will benefit during the next three years after the area was given a smaller share of cash towards the scheme than expected.

Lewes District Council and the Kent-based Moat Housing Group made a joint bid for funding to provide low-cost homes under the Government's Starter Home Initiative.

The bid requested funding to help 135 workers throughout East Sussex, excluding Brighton and Hove.

More than £14 million is to be spent on housing 534 key workers throughout East and West Sussex, Kent and Essex.

It will enable nurses, health workers, teachers and a limited number of other key worker groups to buy homes closer to their places of work, helping to ease staffing problems in public services.

Rod Wilson, lead member for housing on the district council, welcomed the initiative but said: "I am a little disappointed the funding for East Sussex is not as much as we might have expected.

"Nevertheless, we hope this will help people in key jobs, such as nurses, teachers, health workers and others who are crucial to our community."

The scheme enables eligible workers to purchase a percentage of the equity in a property of their choice, close to where they work, using either a mortgage or savings.

They are then provided with a loan that is paid off when the property is eventually resold.