AN OXFORD secondary school has become the first in the county to be rated "outstanding" by education watchdogs.

Ofsted inspector Peter Limm told the 1,777 pupils at the Cherwell School, in Marston Ferry Road, North Oxford, they received a top education from dedicated teachers.

Oxfordshire County Council education chief Janet Tomlinson, who recently delivered a damning verdict on the county's underperforming state schools, believes the school has set the standard for all schools in Oxfordshire.

"I congratulate staff, pupils, governors and parents who, together, helped to achieve this tremendous result," she said.

"Earlier this month I said we needed to make huge improvements to Oxfordshire's schools.

"The Cherwell School is an example of what can be achieved by strong leadership, rigorous assessment, support for under-achieving pupils and excellent teaching."

Mr Limm said teaching standards at Cherwell were "significantly above national averages" and achievement was "outstanding".

"Cherwell provides an outstanding quality of education," he said.

"The school prides itself on creating a well-ordered learning environment and students spoke of teachers who made lessons fun. Students' attainment on entry is just above average and they make outstanding progress overall.

"One parent said that attending the school had opened up a whole new world to her daughter."

His only criticism was the poor attendance records of certain students and he called on headteacher Jill Judson to deal with persistent absentees.

Mrs Judson said she was immensely proud of the report and that she hoped it sent a strong message to the county council that Oxfordshire's secondary schools were not complacent.

She said: "I had to ask the inspector to repeat himself, it was so good. It's a very thorough report and it talks us up throughout."

Mrs Judson explained the small minority of persistent absentees had usually been moved from other schools.

To read the full report, go to www.ofsted.gov.uk