  We have carried out JHK polarimetric observations of eleven dusty young
stars, by using the polarimeter module IRPOL2 with the near-IR camera UIST on
the 3.8-m United Kingdom Infrared Telescope (UKIRT). Our sample targeted
systems for which UKIRT-resolvable discs had been predicted by model fits to
their spectral energy distributions. Our observations have confirmed the
presence of extended polarized emission around TW Hya and around HD 169142. HD
150193 and HD 142666 show the largest polarization values among our sample, but
no extended structure was resolved. By combining our observations with HST
coronographic data from the literature, we derive the J- and H-band intrinsic
polarization radial dependences of TW Hya's disc. We find the disc's polarizing
efficiency is higher at H than at J, and we confirm that the J- and H-band
percentage polarizations are reasonably constant with radius in the region
between 0.9 and 1.3 arcseconds from the star. We find that the objects for
which we have detected extended polarizations are those for which previous
modelling has suggested the presence of flared discs, which are predicted to be
brighter than flat discs and thus would be easier to detect polarimetrically.
