The development of a bilingual French-Australian school…in Pozières !

A well-known figure in the local French community, where he was elected for many years as a reprentative of the French Living Abroad, John MacColl continues to invest his energy in bilingual education projects… but this time, in France!

After having seen the creation of The International French School of Sydney (Lycée Condorcet) and assisted in the development of the Ecole Française de Melbourne, John will use his savoir-faire in a new challenge : a French-Australian school in Pozières, in the department of the Somme, in collaboration with Bernard Delattre, Mayor of the village.

Bernard Delattre, Mayor of Pozières, and John MacColl

Why Pozières ? There were more deaths in the six weeks of the Battle of Pozieres for the ANZACs troupes than there had been in the whole Gallipolli campaign! Indeed, almost 7,000 Australian soldiers were killed on Pozières battlefield while 23,000 were injured. The war historian of the time, Charles Bean, wrote that ”no acre in France was more richly steeped with Australian blood”.

A French-Australian school would be a way to pay tribute to the ANZAC soldiers who passed away and to keep alive their memory.

Visual of the French-Australian school of Pozières

For more info, please refer to the article by Le Courrier Australien here.