More than 10,000 teens are being arrested each year as youth crime rockets, an investigation by The Argus has revealed.

The scale of youth offending was laid bare in official figures, which show juvenile arrests have increased by more than 30 per cent in ten years.

Experts are particularly worried by a rise in violent crime and drug offences.

The figures, released by Sussex Police, show youngsters have been arrested for murder, robbery, rape, indecent assault and serious assault.

Last night, youth workers said the figures proved the Government's crusade against antisocial behaviour and its attempts to curb the booze culture had failed.

The number of arrests among ten to 17-year-olds has gone up from 7,506 in 1995 to 10,070 last year - a rise of 34 per cent.

The figures, released under the Freedom of Information Act, reveal the worst area for youth crime is Crawley, followed by Eastbourne and Hastings. The lowest levels are in the Adur district, although arrests there have risen by 69 per cent over ten years.

Lewes has experienced the biggest increase of the decade - 168 per cent since 1995 - while west Brighton, Wealden and Mid Sussex, show a reduction.

Crime involving violence and drugs have risen sharply in all districts.

Our investigation comes a week after we revealed the number of pupils being excluded from East Sussex schools had risen by 15 per cent since 2002.

Mike Thomas, of West Sussex County Council, said a higher number of crimes were being committed by the same number of youths because of the modern trend to deal with low-level crime in the courts.

He said: "There are certainly a lot more police prosecutions because they are intervening earlier but it's my personal view that we should keep youngsters out of the criminal justice system for as long as possible to avoid labelling them offenders and giving them that stigma.

"I think as a society we're less tolerant. We criminalise teenagers for hanging around the streets when there are fewer youth services and places for youngsters to go."

Parents reacted with shock to the figures and blamed financial pressures for keeping them from spending time monitoring their children's behaviour.

Mother-of-two Dionne Cheung, a nightclub director from Horsham, said: "I don't get enough time with my kids but I can't do much about it if I want to keep the roof over their heads.

"I work seven days a week and run the nightclub on weekend nights."

Melanie Boswell, 37, a bodyguard, of Green Lane, Bexhill, who has two boys, said: "The problem is the cost of living is too high.

"Everyone is out working and parents can't find the time to spend with their children and give them the moral guidance they need."

A spokesman for Sussex Police said the higher arrest figures reflected a more pro-active approach to policing over the last few years, with more officers on the streets intervening in low-level crime before it spiralled.

Youth workers called for better facilities to keep teens out of trouble.

John Izzard, the father of comedian Eddie Izzard and treasurer of Sidley youth centre in Bexhill, said: "The state and local government should have a statutory responsibility to provide leisure facilities for young people."

But others said youth clubs were not the answer.

Mike Conn, headteacher at Bexhill High School, said: "Teenagers don't want our version of growing up with organised fun.

"Youth clubs do a fantastic job but many teenagers don't want to hang out in them. They don't know what they want a lot of the time but anything they could do costs more money than they can afford. That's the problem."

See BBC One's Politics Show on Sunday at midday for more coverage from The Argus.