The alarming extent of the knife culture in Sussex's smaller towns and villages has been revealed in new police figures.

The number of blades collected during the five-week knife amnesty in Brighton and Hove, Crawley and other big population centres are largely as expected.

But campaigners expressed shock last night at the high numbers of weapons being handed in in traditionally quiet towns such as Horsham, Bexhill and Haywards Heath.

While 266 weapons were collected in Brighton and Hove - by far the county's biggest population centre with more than 240,000 residents - Bexhill, which is a fifth of the size and traditionally thought of as a retirement destination, had 327 knives handed in during the amnesty.

In Horsham, which has a population of just 45,000, 307 knives were handed in, while 172 blades were collected in Haywards Heath - the equivalent of one for every 134 residents.

Dee Edwards, of anti-violence lobby group Mothers Against Murder And Aggression said: "The figures are scary. It's always the rurals areas where people have a lot of weapons - we don't know why.

"Police forces in rural areas always say they don't have any problem with knife culture but then you see figures like this.

"The figures in total are appalling. We are not stupid enough to think hardened criminals would hand their weapons in, so it's impossible to know how many knives people are carrying around.

"An amnesty is a good idea but only if it is not on its own. More needs to be done alongside it, such as educating our children. You can't put a price on a child's life."

Police were called to seven stabbings across the county during the amnesty, which ran until the end of June.

More than 3,700 knives and other weapons were handed in - more than double the number collected during the last amnesty ten years ago.

Tim Loughton, MP for East Worthing and Shoreham, said: "It's particularly alarming that so many knives are in circulation in Shoreham and Worthing, which have not previously been regarded as hot spots for violent crime.

"Perhaps the police should think again about their priorities for policing the ess urbanised parts of Sussex."

Thirty-two sealed bins, placed at police stations across the county, have been opened this week and their contents checked and counted.

Weapons have included ornamental knives, two Tarantulas - spider-shaped weapons with blades as the legs - and small axes.

Norman Baker, MP for Lewes, said: "Clearly what's been handed in will be a fraction of what's out there. It is clear there is a problem with knives."

Rodney Ash, firearms and explosives manager for Sussex Police, said: "It is difficult to try to read into the figures. It may well be people in Hastings didn't want to hand in their weapons where they were known so they would take them to Bexhill station.

Councillor Eric Armstrong, chairman of the Safer Rother Partnership and Mayor of Bexhill, said: "I think if we look at the figures for knife incidents in Bexhill we will find the figures are very low.

"Unfortunately people have gone out with knives but I am pleased people have been handing them in.

"My concern was that this amnesty might not work but obviously it has."

The number of knives handed over in Sussex since the amnesty:

Bexhill - 327
Horsham - 307
Eastbourne - 269
Worthing - 255
Shoreham - 219
Brighton - 195
Hastings - 179
Haywards Heath - 172
Crawley - 158
Littlehampton - 153
East Grinstead - 152
Hailsham - 146
Chichester - 140
Burgess Hill - 134
Bognor - 124
Seaford - 117
Battle - 82
Uckfield - 75
Hove - 71
Lewes - 67
Rye - 65
Manhood - 60
Lancing - 59
Petworth - 42
Steyning - 35
Midhurst - 33
Crowborough - 28
Newhaven - 27
Headquarters - 23
Arundel - 3
Heathfield - 1
Total - 3,718