A Green activist who is quitting his council described the authority as a "Victorian gentleman's smoking club".

Simon Williams said Brighton and Hove City Council's policy of holding public meetings in the afternoon prevented most people from attending.

Coun Williams, who has represented the ward of St Peter's and North Laine since 2003, said he had reluctantly decided not to stand for re-election next year because he was unable to attend meetings while training as a solicitor.

The 34-year-old is calling for Brighton and Hove to follow the example of London boroughs and hold meetings in the evenings to prevent the council becoming a refuge for retirees and the independently wealthy. Starting times vary from 2pm to 5pm.

Coun Williams said: "The council is not making enough effort to help people who have jobs or families to serve as councillors.

"Although members receive a basic allowance it's simply not enough to cover the cost of living in this expensive city. This means people have to work alongside their council responsibilities.

"Because so many meetings are in the working day rather than evenings, it's difficult for people who have full-time day jobs, especially when their employer is not able to be flexible. This is frequently the case in the private sector.

"The end result is that many people who would like to stand for election and serve their local community are prevented from doing so. I'm one of the younger councillors and I know the few of us across the political spectrum who are below the age of 40 are finding it difficult. The risk is that those who are left do not reflect the wider community, leaving only the wealthy, self- or part-time employed and retired."

The average age of Brighton and Hove City Council's 54 elected members is 57 - significantly higher than the average age of city residents, which is 38. Two-thirds of elected members are retired, economically inactive or self-employed.

Coun Williams, who is the Greens' spokesman for adult social care and health on the council, added: "It seems as though we have a timetable more suited to the era of a Victorian gentleman's smoking club - except the council has banned smoking and now admits women."

Labour council leader Simon Burgess said members were divided over the "intractable" issue of meeting times because while some wanted to meet in the evenings to help them continue to hold full-time jobs, others with children preferred to meet earlier.

Coun Burgess said: "We have a reasonable compromise at the moment. I would like to see more young councillors but I'm not sure they would want to be at meetings late at night either."