A court has revealed it has a six-week waiting list to hear applications for bankruptcy.

Brighton County Court has had to take on more staff and employees are working extra hours to cope with the rise in people going bust.

It is the latest evidence that more people in Brighton and Hove are struggling to pay back money borrowed.

Earlier this month, The Argus reported how people were sinking in debt as credit card spending and loans spiralled out of control.

Personal bankruptcy in the county is at an all-time high as post-Christmas spending binges hit home.

National statistics put Sussex sixth on a list of bankruptcy hot spots, with Brighton and Hove among the places worst hit by debt.

In the third quarter of 2005 there were 359 personal bankruptcies in Sussex compared with 297 in 2004. Of those, 260 were in Brighton, compared to 200 in 2004.

The rush in applications is being blamed on the ease in gaining credit and lax attitudes to debt. New laws have also made it easier to file for bankruptcy. Legislation that came into effect in April 2005 has cut the length of a bankruptcy order from three years to 12 months.

A court spokeswoman said yesterday: "We used to deal with debtors' petitions in the morning but from today we are doing them in the afternoons as well and we have taken on another member of staff to try to get the waiting list times down."

The number of bankruptcies are higher if business applications are included.

From January to March 2005, before the legislation came into effect, the number of applicants declared insolvent in Sussex was 401.

From April to June, with the new laws in place, the number was 454 and rose to 464 for the third quarter. A 26-year-old furniture aker from Brighton, who filed for bankruptcy in March, told The Argus: "I couldn't make the payments my creditors wanted, not for about five to six years, but bankruptcy got rid of my debts instantly and after six years, your bad credit history falls off anyway, like points on a driving licence.

"In my situation it made a lot of sense."

Sarah Nancollas, director of NancollasGreer, a company that offers insolvency advice, said: "I do not think it is a stigma anymore, although it is still a bad idea to file for bankruptcy if you have got assets or property or a surplus income.

"You might be discharged quickly but you can be paying the official receiver for three years and have problems getting credit."

A spokeswoman for the Insolvency Service said: "The real difference has been in people's attitudes to debt and the availability of credit."