Staff and parents at an Oxford school are looking forward to a Fresh Start - a multi-million-pound initiative bringing new buildings and new equipment.

Rose Hill Primary School in The Oval was built in 1951 and is falling apart.

Tests results have been poor - the 313-pupil school was issued with a notice to improve by Ofsted inspectors in 2005, and in January was placed on special measures.

Headteacher Sue Mortimer, who joined the school in September, has been praised for achieving some improvement in results.

But in a bid to achieve a major turnaround, the county council agreed yesterday to start consultation on a Fresh Start bid.

Mrs Mortimer said yesterday that the launch of the consultation process was "wonderful news for the school and for the community".

She added: "Alongside other regeneration work taking place on the estate, this could transform the area.

"The school is no longer fit-for-purpose - it is built on five different levels - but it now has a very exciting future."

If the scheme gets the go-ahead from the Department for Children, Schools and Families, the existing school would get a new name in September 2008, and a new school would be built alongside the old one.

There is no current estimate on when the new school building would be completed.

Mrs Mortimer said: "We are confident that through this process we can get out of special measures and drive standards up.

"We will see results improve so that every child has the best life chances. The school would have a new name on September 1 and, to begin with, the new school would work from within the existing building."

Mrs Mortimer added that once the new school building had been completed the old school would be demolished.

She estimated that the county council would bid for at least £6m of funding from the DCSF for the new school to be built.

Michael Waine, the county's cabinet member for education, said a bid for funding would be made to the DCSF when the consultation process began in two weeks' time.

He said the consultation of "all stakeholders" would conclude in January and added: "The sooner we can get this off the ground the better for the children and community of Rose Hill."

Education officer Roy Leach added that the school site was large enough for construction work to take place alongside the existing buildings.

Mr Leach said the bidding process would have to be open to competition from other possible promoters of the project, including the Diocese of Oxford.

Staff at the school will also have to apply for posts in the new school.