A scheme to make Brighton and Hove City Council services more accessible to the public will be launched in February.

The council will start with 12 services ranging from reporting broken street lights to ordering library books.

The system, backed by £200,000 in Government money for new technology, will be called City Direct.

There will be a new logo for City Direct and people will be able to use these services through self-help points provided free in libraries and leisure centres as well as through home computers.

The City Direct services will also be available at three main centres in the city: Bartholomew House in Brighton, Hove Town Hall and Portslade neighbourhood office in Victoria Road.

Services initially under the City Direct banner are libraries, complaints, concessionary travel, abandoned vehicles, student support, street cleansing, waste, planning and development control, street lighting, Care Link, pavement and road repairs and environmental health.

Councillors at the policy committee on Wednesday are expected to agree to another bid of £200,000 for electronic back-up.

This will enable more services to be added at intervals to the scheme.

The council is latching on to the Government's modernisation agenda, which includes making all services available electronically.

Council leader Ken Bodfish said it was more than adding to the council's web site.

"We are looking at how we can improve the entire operation behind people's requests as well as making it available online.

"That will include new customer service standards, extra staff training, special phone helplines and clearer council forms."

Coun Bodfish said the information would also enable the council to meet requirements of the Freedom of Information Act, which said that by February the council should produce a guide of what it had published and what it intended to publish.

Soon all committee agendas, minutes and other papers will be accessible from the council web site.

Coun Bodfish said: "There is a mountain of information, ranging from guidance on ancient monuments to the policy on dealing with bad weather, that could also be available on the web site."