Celebrations for VE Day were in full swing across the city yesterday, with special commemorations for the women who helped the war effort.
Sheffield was a significant industrial power during World War Two due to the steel factories, a key arms supplier for the British Army.
In 2016, Sheffield City Council unveiled the Women of Steel statue in the city centre to honour the women who worked in the factories to keep the vital industry running.
The Women of Steel campaign raised almost £170,000, part of which paid for medallions to commemorate those women.
Sheffield High School for Girl’s, an independent single sex school, spent VE day commemorating their alumni who helped the war effort.
A spokesperson for the school said: “As we mark the 80th Anniversary of VE Day, we pause to honour the remarkable women of our alumnae community who served during WWII. Their stories remind us of the historic depth, strength, and legacy that define Sheffield Girls’—a legacy that we hope will continue to inspire generations to come.”
Air Commodore Molly Greenwood Allot was the first woman wing officer at a command headquarter with responsibility for the supply of air craft and technical equipment. During WWII she joined the Royal Air Force and served on coastal command stations until 1945, after the war had ended.
Air Commodore Allot was also the first woman in the RAF supply branch to have been promoted to the rank of Air Commodore.
She said to the Sheffield Telegraph in 1976: “Women can do some jobs better than men.”
Lucy Gibson, Alumnae Relations and Marketing Assistant for the school, said: “It is so lovely to be able to work for a school with such a rich history of strong, independent women and even more of an honour working to showcase and strengthen the very same community these women were once a part of.”
Sheffield Girl’s School’s alumni includes the first female diplomat Lady Cicely Mayhew. She was recruited by naval intelligence and translated signals sent from German fleets in Bletchley Park.
VE Day is celebrated across the UK as a way to honour everyone who came together in the war effort.
