A flagship Government scheme to help lone parents back into work has secured less than 20 placements in Brighton in the past year.

Brighton has one of the least successful "employment zones" in the country, show figures released to MPs.

Most zones are helping many single parents find work every year.

The Government claims more than 4,200 have found jobs since October 2003.

The most successful zone, in Brent and Haringey in London, has seen 637 people who are single-handedly raising children find work in the 12 months to November.

But in Brighton and Hove the figure is just 18. Only Plymouth, with six, has a lower score.

Sharon Halsall is secretary of the parent and children's group at the Brighton and Hove Unemployed Workers Centre.

She said: "In Brighton, we pay London rents on our properties and tourist prices in our shops but the majority of jobs are in the service industry and they don't pay London wages. This hits single parents very badly."

She said the steep cost of childcare coupled with the high cost of living in the city meant many single parents were in the "poverty trap" and could not afford to work.

Ms Halsall suggested schemes like employment zones would be more effective if subsidised childcare was more readily available in Brighton as it is in London.

Ministers said they were reviewing employment zones. There are signs that those with more than one contractor succeed better.

Brighton and Hove has only one Working Links.

Work minister Margaret Hodge said: "An evaluation of employment zones and analysis of data will examine the performance of employment zones in relation to JobCentre Plus comparison sites.

"This will examine performance by client groups, including lone parents. We expect to complete this by autumn and publish results by the end of the year."

The scheme gives jobless single parents access to a personal adviser from Working Links.

They provide action plans to help someone find a job, while benefits and entitlements continue.