A YORK mother is appealing to the city's landlords to keep her 14-year-old daughter out of their pubs after she spent the night with four "squaddies".

The exasperated mother, from Clifton, says she plans to go around York's pubs with her teenager's photograph and beg landlords not to let her in.

She decided to crack down on her daughter's underage drinking when she found she had gone to two bars with a 15-year-old friend, and spent the night in a York hotel with four men aged 18 to 20 claiming to be in the Army.

The teenage girls had told their parents they were sleeping at each other's houses.

The mother said the girls claim nothing happened with the men, but she is unsure whether to believe them.

"We asked the police what we can do about it and they said nothing. They have told us just to believe our daughters' stories," she said.

"We are at the end of our tethers. We have nowhere to go for help."

She said more needed to be done in the city to crack down on underage drinkers.

"I don't think kids realise the dangers they could be in from things like date rape."

She added she had grounded her child for a month and would be checking up on her more.

The mother of the 15-year-old said the two girls had been in a very dangerous situation.

She said: "The ratio of four men to two girls doesn't bear thinking about.

"The bar obviously wasn't checking IDs. As parents, you just feel you have nobody on your side."

Clifton councillor Ken King said he had been alarmed to hear what had happened.

He said: "Having brought up four daughters myself, I am concerned that girls who are very vulnerable are being allowed to purchase drinks in public houses."

He said he had spoken to the council's licensing department, and officers planned to ask the police to visit the two bars that had sold the girls drinks.

PC David Boag, licensing officer for York, said: "It's a very difficult subject. This doesn't just rest with the police, parents have a responsibility as well, but all door staff and licensees are trained on how to check for underage drinkers.

"We are aware that many ID cards are available and our recommendations are for licensees to check for a passport, a driving licence, a citizen card, or a Portman Group proof of age card."

Updated: 10:35 Wednesday, March 03, 2004