BREATHTAKING views, spiralling staircases and endless walls of glass make the Blavatnik School of Government building "world-class", visitors have said.

Hundreds of eager neighbours and residents of the newly-opened Oxford building received a sneak peek inside the "beautiful" work of architecture today, as part of the its first open day.

The school was opened to students at the end of 2015, but has never been made accessible to the public until now. And university staff hope to organise more events where residents can come and visit again.

Chief operating officer of the Blavatnik Calum Miller said he was just delighted with how the open day went.

He said: "It's been wonderful to welcome our neighbours inside and show them around our new home.

"I love the building so much - but I'm biased. People have commented on the openness, and lots of people have showed interest in what the school is up to and what it is trying to achieve."

A total of 764,000 hours of work went into the construction of the school, which can be accessed from both Woodstock Road and Walton Street, in Jericho.

Architect Lucy Mori, 49, from Summertown, came to the open day and bumped into her former Cambridge classmate and fellow architect Adrian James.

Ms Mori said: "How wonderful for Oxford to have a landmark as amazing as this building. It's incredible to come inside and see the space which you can't perceive from the outside."

Mr James, 53, who lives in Osney, added: "Oxford now has a world class institution, and a building to match.

"It's surprising. You don't appreciate the size of the building until you get close. And the concrete is just beautiful."

Head of communications for the school Alison Stibbe called the building "a thing of beauty".

She said: "We have had a tremendous reaction from the community throughout its construction. We wanted to create the opportunity where all those people - neighbours, residents, architecture fans - could see inside for themselves.

"We have had incredibly positive feedback, such warmth and enthusiasm."

The graduate school this year has 117 students, all studying a masters degree in public policy.

The building was designed to promote open discussion and interaction, and stretches up to five floors with an exclusive outside balcony space.

Lead architect John O'Mara visited the open day with his partner Beatie Blakemore and their eight-month-old daughter Mollie.

Mr O'Mara, 44, said: "It's been smashing today. The people here have been really positive. It's so gratifying and it's nice to see the public enjoying it. There's been a really good sense of movement."