Sally Kennedy vividly remembers the day she pushed a baby buggy into Kensington Gardens, Brighton, for the first time.

The bright young things giving out flyers for club nights studiously ignored her.

She said: "Until that moment, I had always been handed flyers. But as soon as I had a pushchair, I was invisible. I've never been flyered since."

Although bristling with indignation, Sally was too busy with daughter Milly, and later son Will, to protest and too tired to dance.

A few years later, while making the children's tea, she was listening to Johnnie Walker on Radio 2 when he played a Chaka Khan song.

She said: "I found myself dancing round the kitchen and thinking how much I missed dancing. I checked the listings to see if there was a club that started early where I could go and dance my socks off like I did when I was young, free and single. There wasn't, so I decided to start one."

Mother Funkers - for "bad mothers who miss those boogie nights" - kicks off its shoes next month.

Sally, 46, of Harrington Road, Brighton, said her starting point was to cater for people like her - women who love to dance but need to be up at the crack of dawn the next day to deal with young children.

She said: "Everything available at the moment is aimed at students and 'city' clubbers - there is nothing for women of my age apart from seedy, leery wine bars. We take our kids to dance and yet never get to dance ourselves.

"We don't want to go into the city centre and pay God knows how much to get into a club that doesn't start till 11pm and finishes at 3am.

"A night out like that, with taxis, babysitter and drinks, can cost £60. At the end of it all you're knackered and there is nothing more agonising than having a late night and then having to deal with children the next morning.

"Okay, you can leave at midnight but then you get that sinking feeling when you have to go and everyone else is partying. This way everyone goes home happy and is tucked up in bed by midnight."

Mother Funkers was born in Sally's kitchen, courtesy of her and a bunch of friends cavorting to their favourite records.

Sally, a former radio producer, said: "We ended up sitting on the floor doing Oops Upside Your Head, having a great laugh and me wondering where my life had gone!

"With Mother Funkers, I'm going for that feeling you get when you've been to a wedding and had a good dance and afterwards you think 'God, that was fantastic'. I've done a lot of research and, sadly, I know I'm not alone in dancing to Johnnie Walker. The principle is the early night - you don't have to have sprogged to be a Mother Funker."

All women are welcome and men too, as long as they are prepared to strut their stuff.

Sally said: "Dancing men are very welcome - it's not a knit-your-own-muesli night - but not if they are just going to stand at the bar, drinking beer.

"There's no dress code but if you've got a boob tube that has been lying unused for years, get it on. I'd like it to be a bit of an occasion but all you really have to do is just bring your socks - and dance them off!"

The inaugural Mother Funkers is at St Mary's Church Hall in Surrenden Road, Brighton, on Friday, November 12. And Sally is at pains to stress that this is no ordinary church hall.

She said: "It's a stunning room with lovely archways. There's room to dance - you're not squashed up against people.

"It's important to me that it is just as good as going to a club. It's not a hop. There is a full bar, lights, a superb DJ - Paul Wilson - and a good sound system."

The music will range from Heatwave and Chic to Blondie and Tom Jones to the KLF and Scissor Sisters but no "smoochy stuff". The playlist will change according to what the customers want.

Sally will be asking dancers to compile their top ten dancing songs for future use so the next Mother Funkers will be tailor-made.

The first event will cater for the area around Fiveways, Brighton, but Sally plans to use two more venues in Hanover and at Seven Dials.

She hopes to make the club a six-weekly (half-termly) event.

Tickets are on sale opposite St Mary's at the Park View pub.

Sally said: "It's perfect for people to meet beforehand for a drink. It has just been refurbished and has turned from a dingy pub into something sexy, like a cross between the Hotel du Vin and the Open House."

She is still busily publicising the event by handing out flyers.

"I'm purposely handing them to women with buggies and I'm going to ignore anyone who looks like they haven't got out of bed until 2pm - a sure sign they haven't got children.

"I'm going to discriminate in favour of tired mums, especially the ones who don't look like they have got enough oomph to go dancing."

Tickets are £6 on the night, or £5 in advance from the Park View, in Preston Drove, by email to motherfunkers@tempo.plus.com or by calling 01273 555334.