Nine county schools have been praised after receiving an ‘outstanding’ rating from school inspector Ofsted.

Pupils and staff at the six primary, two secondary and one nursery schools were invited to a special reception at Yarnton Manor, where they received an Excellence in Oxfordshire award.

The schools received Ofsted’s top rating in 2009.

They were:

* Aston Rowant Church of England School, Watlington

* Bartholomew School, Eynsham

* Chilton Primary School

* Enstone Primary School

* Hook Norton Primary School

* Langtree School, Woodcote

* Longcot and Fernham Primary School

* The Ace Centre Nursery School, Chipping Norton

* Whitchurch Primary School, Whitchurch-on-Thames

The number getting the honours was down from 12 in 2008 and did not include any schools from Oxford.

Keith Mitchell, leader of Oxfordshire County Council, told them: “We know Ofsted has raised the bar, but you have leapt over the bar.

“This event is to say thank-you to teachers, pupils and everyone in your school communities for all the hard work you have done,” he added.

Among the schools recognised was Bartholomew School, in Eynsham, which has around 950 pupils and was rated outstanding following an last May’s inspection.

Proud headteacher Andrew Hamilton said: “The qualities the school has shown over many years have been recognised by this award, not just the snapshot from an Ofsted inspection.

“We still recognise there is a lot more we can do and are striving to improve. We don’t want to rest on our laurels.”

Headgirl Emily Fisk said: “Whatever the time of day, whether before or after school, you can always find a teacher to help you at school.”

Longcot and Fernham Primary School, south of Faringdon, was another to be praised for its achievements.

Headteacher David Howlett said: “This is a credit to all in the Longcot School community and reflects all their hard work and the continued progress that the school has made.”

Enstone Primary School headteacher Lindsay Daulton said she felt privileged to work there.

She said: “The staff are a dedicated team who work extremely hard to make Enstone the excellent learning environment that it is.

“We were all delighted with the recent outstanding judgement from Ofsted.”

Hook Norton Primary School, near Banbury, was rated outstanding in every area assessed.

Headteacher Stella Belgrove said: “We want the very best all-round education and care for our children, and it was good to see that Ofsted agreed we’re providing that.”

Year Six pupil Oliver Gardner added: “We get involved in all sorts of other things that the inspector was very interested in – we have a good ecological background and now we have got together with Low Carbon Hook Norton, which has given us £200,000 to make the school more energy-efficient.”

Michael Waine, the county council’s cabinet member for schools improvement, said: “We have got to use our outstanding schools to spread their special messages and create other outstanding schools across the county.”

Pupils read poems and talked about why they thought their schools were outstanding.