DISRUPTIVE pupils should be given individual mentors to improve their behaviour to avoid expulsion, Phil Willis MP is urging.

The Harrogate and Knaresborough MP and Liberal Democrat education spokesman today unveiled his party's new policy on dealing with unruly youngsters at school.

He criticised the Government's target for each local education authority to reduce the number of permanent exclusions by a third by 2002.

Instead, the Liberal Democrats want individual behaviour plans for difficult pupils - drawn up between teachers, parents, the LEA and the child.

If this failed, pupils could be referred to in-school special units rather than being sent to out-of-school centres.

Mr Willis said: "Schools must have the freedom to deal with discipline as they believe is appropriate for the child and the school.

"A national target does not give them this flexibility."

He stressed that disruptive pupils often had a poor self-image which suffered further if they were excluded or sent to a "sin-bin".

He highlighted Audit Commission research which showed that 30 per cent of pupils temporarily excluded, and 79 per cent permanently expelled, got a criminal record.

Meanwhile, work being done with pupils who are expelled from school in York is to be studied by Government experts later this month.

Government inspectors are visiting the city to find out more about how different organisations work together.

Their work will form the basis for a national report about the best way for local councils to organise education and training for children who are out of school.

The visit from Her Majesty's Inspectorate follows the City of York Council's success in its recent Ofsted inspection.

Murray Rose, principal education officer at the council, said: "Because the team will be looking at multi-agency working and because they wish to learn lessons which can be applied nationally, the team will probably contain inspectors of services other than education.

"They will be looking at the way educational services in York successfully tackle issues such as getting excluded youngsters back into education or into work and training when they leave school and obviously will be taking away examples of how such issues might be approached elsewhere.

"The HMIs' visit is quite a compliment to the work which is being done in York between the council and partners such as York College and the employers who give these young people a chance."

The Government team will be in York from September 11 to 13.

janet.hewison@ycp.co.uk