More than one in three children from single-parent families in Brighton and Hove will lose contact with one of their parents, new research has revealed.

Fathers groups said the figures, released yesterday, highlighted the need for courts to be tougher on mothers denying estranged husbands access to their children.

The survey was compiled by child psychologist Pat Spungin, founder of raisingkids.co.uk, who said: "It is widely acknowledged that where there is a family split, it is often the father who loses contact with his children.

"However, these figures show that the likelihood of a child losing contact with either one of their biological parents is higher than most people would expect."

Jim Parton, from support group Families Need Fathers, said: "These figures confirm what we have known for years. Other figures nationally have been similar to this and 40 per cent is often the figure cited.

"This is a huge societal problem - children lose touch with their parents far too easily.

"The courts are now making greater efforts to ensure children don't lose touch with their parents but are still backing away from getting really tough with resident parents.

"Ultimately, the people who lose out are the fathers, as it is more often the fathers who are separated and then of course the children."

Mr Parton said research proved children fare better with contact from both parents.

He said: "Boys and girls do better at school and there are far lower incidences of teenage pregnancy among girls.

"There is far less evidence of delinquent behaviour from both boys and girls and, in later life, children with both parents are able to build better, stronger relationships themselves.

"Resident parents who use children as weapons against their former partners are playing with fire when it comes to their own children's mental health and should be very careful before taking that course of action."

Brighton and Hove follows the national average, with 37 per cent of children losing contact with an estranged parent.

In comparison, 83 per cent of families in the South-West manage to maintain contact following a family split.

The research was commissioned by Railcard, which is altering its rules for family tickets to reflect the results.