Head of College: Ms Emily Kempthorne
Deputy Head of College: Ms Moran
College Pastoral Manager: Ms Wales
Violette Szabo was born in France on 26th June, 1921. Later the family moved to London and she was educated at a Brixton Secondary School.
During the Second World War Violette met Etienne Szabo, an officer in the Free French Army. The couple decided to get married when they discovered that Etienne was about to be sent to fight in North Africa.
Soon after giving birth to their daughter, Tania Szabo, Violette heard that her husband had been killed at El Alamein. She now developed a strong desire to get involved in the war effort and eventually joined the Special Operations Executive (SOE).
Overcoming initial opposition to a woman being involved in such dangerous missions Violette was parachuted into France where she had the task of obtaining information about the resistance in the Rouen area. Despite being arrested by the French police she completed her mission successfully and after being in occupied territory for six weeks she returned to England.
Violette returned to France in June 1944 but was ambushed by a German patrol. By providing covering fire Szabo enabled a comrade to escape before she herself was captured. After being tortured by the Gestapo she was sent to Ravensbruck Concentration Camp in Germany.
Some time in the spring of 1945, with Allied troops closing in on Nazi Germany, Violette Szabo was executed. After her death she was awarded the Croix de Guerre and the George Cross, both signs of great honour. Her story is told in the book and film entitled Carve Her Name With Pride.
Violette Szabo showed great courage, strength and determination. She never gave up and she stood up for what she believed in. She is the embodiment of everything that members of Szabo College aspire to be.
Like Szabo, we must aim to show courage, strength and determination in everything that we do. Like Szabo, we must truly believe that success is possible even against the most formidable of odds. For that reason Szabo college members repeat to themselves a simple phrase as they work towards their goals: 'We can succeed...we will succeed'.