Some of the most deprived areas of Sussex are to share in millions of pounds of Government funding.

Deputy Prime Minister John Prescott announced that Brighton and Hove and Hastings will receive just under £5.5 million to help fight poverty.

The money is part of the £800 million Neighbourhood Renewal Fund (NRF) being given out across England during the next two years, designed to improve public services for the people and places that need them most.

Yesterday, Mr Prescott said: "Already, we are turning around years of neglect that have blighted our most deprived neighbourhoods.

"Across the country, people are benefiting from efforts to reverse the spiral of decline in impoverished communities, to create places where people want to live not leave.

"We are giving local people the tools to improve their quality of life, to kick-start regeneration by targeting services to the people and places that need them most. The results speak for themselves."

Although it has not been decided how the new funding will be spent, previous NRF money in Brighton was used to pay for community wardens to help with police and to provide family support for residents, particularly for those for whom English is not their first language.

In Hastings, it has been used to appoint tutors to improve school attendance and help adults with their literacy and numeracy skills.

Brighton and Hove City Council will receive £1,368,876 this year and the same amount the following year. Hastings Borough Council will get £1,375,160 this year and the same in 2005-06.

The NRF was set up in 2001 to help local authorities regenerate the country's most deprived areas.