A SOUTH Oxfordshire primary school has been rated ‘good’ by Ofsted for the first time since 2012.

Dorchester St Birinus Church of England School in Dorchester on Thames was praised by inspectors who visited in December.

Their report, which has now been officially released, has been warmly received by parents and staff, who said it reflected the true nature of the school.

A previous inspection in 2012 had deemed it ‘satisfactory’ – the second-lowest rating above ‘inadequate’.

The school was given the same level of ranking, renamed by Ofsted as ‘requires improvement’, in 2013.

Parent and governor Julia Sadler said everyone was delighted with the new rating.

The mother of pupils Megan, 10, and Carys, eight, said: “It was ‘requires improvement’ before but all the parents could see what a good school it was.

“Being ‘requires improvement’ hit everybody’s confidence – we had some families move their children to other schools.

“It is great that Ofsted has recognised the family feel of the school and how good it is.”

Mrs Sadler, who lives just metres from the school, said its small size could have negatively impacted on it in the past, as sample sizes of only six or seven pupils could have skewed results and led inspectors to rate the school less highly.

Headteacher Russell Leigh said: “The secret to success is having a good team around you, people who want to succeed.

“We encourage the children to challenge things. The idea is that we are all learners.”

Ofsted lead inspector Jim McVeigh noted in his report that the school was particularly warm and friendly. But there was room for improvement, he stated, particularly by improving children’s performance in reading and by giving better feedback to pupils about maths.