Government figures show the number of people sleeping rough in Brighton and Hove has fallen in the past year.

It's only a guess because there are always going to be plenty of people under park benches and in derelict houses who are missed in these counts.

But it does give a rough idea about the rough sleeping problems and the success of measures needed to tackle them.

The best example of progress is in the St Patrick's Centre and night shelter at Cambridge Road in Hove.

Here, scores of homeless people have been taken off the streets. They have not only been given warmth and shelter but have also been helped on the long road to independence.

Most people do not sleep rough because they like it. Often they have other deep-seated problems that need attention such as mental illness, drug addiction and alcoholism.

More money is being ploughed into Brighton to provide long-term help for the homeless as well as quick-fire solutions.

Education of the kind envisaged at St Patrick's may also help homeless people acquire skills that bring them jobs and prevent them from sleeping on the streets again.

Safety first Miniature scooters are all the rage in resorts such as Brighton and Hove as a fun way of zipping about on sunny days.

But people who buy these scooters should beware following an accident to a 15-year-old boy from East Sussex who had part of a finger almost sliced off by the folding mechanism.

The scooter had been bought at Woolworth's in Western Road, Brighton, which has since withdrawn that model from all its stores.

Some unscrupulous manufacturers are cashing in on the craze and bypassing simple safety measures on the way.

It's up to consumers to be careful about their choice of scooter and for stores to check on these models before putting them on sale.

Fruit drops You've heard of carrying coals to Newcastle and exporting fridges to the Eskimos.

Now Chris and Amanda Dennis have gone one stage further by selling citrus fruit to Spain and Portugal.

Their nursery in Pulborough is growing some varieties of fruit that even they do not have over there.

Luckily buying limes from Limeys doesn't give Spaniards the pip.