Voluntary organisations in Brighton and Hove are in a fine old mess thanks to delay by the city council.

Scores of groups applied for a share of cash before a deadline in March but the authority has still not decided who will receive it.

That means many groups relying on council subsidies will not get grants until many months after they were expecting it, leading to some job losses and possible closures.

The message to voluntary organisations is to find other sources of funding as far as possible rather than relying on council funding.

The message to the council is that stifling bureaucracy is wounding or killing the very groups it is trying to help.