Heating charges for vulnerable council tenants could double.

Almost 1,200 people living in communal blocks owned by Brighton and Hove City Council face forking out hundreds of pounds extra to keep warm in the new year.

Under proposals before city councillors tomorrow, heating bills for the mainly elderly residents would rise from a maximum of £233 to £477 per year.

This would mean the maximum weekly charge would jump from £4.48 to £9.18.

Prices have been fixed since the council last tendered its contract two years ago which meant charges to tenants increased only by inflation.

But market analysts say there have been annual increases of 30 to 40 per cent.

This could mean an estimated 86 per cent increase during the next three years.

Reasons for the rise in gas prices include the dwindling supplies of natural gas from the North Sea, which have forced the UK to import more; a rise in oil prices over the past 18 months; and growing demand for gas from the growing economies of China and India and the United States, which is rebuilding stocks following this year's devastating hurricanes.

Pensioner groups warned those likely to be stung from the rises, including 700 people in sheltered accommodation, were least able to cope.

The Met Office said January and February, the first period for which the higher charges would apply, was likely to be the coldest for many years.

Council officers, in a report to members, admitted the proposed rises would "mainly affect vulnerable tenants". They have recommended providing extra advice on claiming state benefits to help them shoulder the cost of heating bills.

Chancellor Gordon Brown has promised winter fuel payments of £200 to households with a member aged 60 and older, £250 for those with a resident aged 70 and older and £300 for homes with a family member aged 80 and above.

These bonuses would barely cover most families' extra heating costs.

Bob Gunnell, vice-chairman of Brighton and Hove's Older People's Council, said: "We are obviously deeply concerned and hope the council does not increase the charges too excessively."

Ray Blackwood of the Coalition of Pensioners Brighton and Hove said: "Paying heating bills is a big concern for pensioners."

Maud Shovlar, 81, of Dudeney Lodge, Brighton, who can expect her weekly £4.09 charge jump to almost ten pounds if the increases are accepted, said: "I'm disgusted. There are some pensioners who would struggle with that and won't be able to afford it."

Housing Councillor Don Turner said the extra charges, which follow the signing of a new contract with British Gas following a tender process, were "regrettable". He said: "It's something we can do nothing about because of the fuel price increases.

"We will be offering help to anyone in difficulty."

He believed tenants would still pay less for heating than private consumers.