THE number of pupils in Bolton expelled for bad behaviour has fallen during the last year - bucking the national trend.

The borough's education chiefs say the figures indicate that the pupil support services are working.

National figures released by the Department for Education and Skills show that pupils excluded from school between 2003-04 were up by six per cent on the previous year, bringing the total to 9,880.

But Bolton's Local Education Authority (LEA) reported a fall, from 69 permanent exclusions in 2002-03 to 47 in 2003-04.

Of those, the large majority of exclusions - 35 per cent - were for persistent disruptive behaviour. A further 20 per cent were expelled for fighting with other pupils.

Six per cent of expulsions were for physical assaults on members of staff, and the same percentage were for verbal abuse towards pupils and adults.

The majority of exclusions - 85 per cent - occurred in secondary schools.

Boys accounted for 85 per cent of those removed from school.

Shabir Fazal, assistant director of education and culture, said Bolton LEA was working to further reduce the expulsion rate in the borough.

He said: "In general, the breakdown of the figures into reasons for exclusion and those who are excluded reflects national trends.

"But the fall in overall figures shows that Bolton has a good support structure in place, such as a pupil referral unit where pupils can receive help.

"We are working with schools to spot potential problems and use preventative measures such as early intervention.

"Pupils are taught to understand the consequences of their behaviour, and where the boundaries are, in classes such as citizenship.

"We are still working with schools and looking to improve the support structures to bring the numbers of pupils excluded down further.

Responding to the national increase, school's minister Jacqui Smith said tackling bad behaviour in schools was a "major priority" for the government.

She said: "We want a zero tolerance approach to disruptive behaviour in all our schools, on everything from backchat to bullying and violence.

"I fully back heads who decide to remove or prosecute anyone - parent or pupil - who is behaving in an aggressive way."