The grieving parents of a university student who mysteriously drowned in the swimming pool while at a friend’s French villa are calling for a full investigation into her death.
Holly Woodcock, 20, from Erith in South London, went to stay at her school friend’s holiday home in August 2024 but tragically never returned.
Five days into the trip at around 1.30am on August 2, following a party with neighbours, Holly, described as a ‘beautiful and gregarious student’, was found alone at the bottom of the pool.
Emergency services were called 14 minutes after Holly was first found, and although her heart briefly restarted following a resuscitation attempt, she was pronounced dead by 3.09am.
An inquest carried out by French authorities ruled that she had drowned at the property in St Hilaire-la-Foret on the French West Coast but did not determine the exact cause of death, with a traumatic cause of death not being ruled out.
Despite this, police closed the investigation after just over a week, despite the mounting number of unanswered questions and mismatched witness accounts of the evening’s events. Officers did not carry out key tests to confirm how much Holly had drunk.
Key evidence, such as DNA samples that could have ruled out a medical incident and her swimming costume, were destroyed. Phones were not checked, and CCTV was never obtained.
Holly’s family raised concerns that witnesses were not interviewed until the following day, with some key witnesses never being spoken with. Their lawyers also claim the timeline of the night’s events are incomplete.
Appeals to reopen the case were rebuffed. The Foreign Office told the family they were unable to help due to restrictions on intervening in another country’s criminal and judicial process.
Holly Woodcock, 20, mysteriously drowned on holiday while at a friend’s French villa in August 2024
Holly’s mother Joanna and father Lee are appealing to the British Government to help get French police to reopen their case
Key evidence, such as DNA samples that could have ruled out a medical incident and her swimming costume, were destroyed
Now Holly’s parents, Lee and Joanna, have called on the Prime Minister to help them find out what happened to Holly and place pressure on his French counterparts. The family’s MP Daniel Francis also raised the case in the House of Commons in a bid to get some answers.
In a letter sent to Sir Keir Starmer, the heartbroken couple said: ‘We do not want special treatment – simply for the case to be investigated as it should have been.’
Speaking to the Daily Mail, Mrs Woodcock, 57, a school administrator who was diagnosed with cancer just three months after Holly’s death, said: ‘I want to say to Keir Starmer, ‘If this were your daughter, you would not have been dealt with this way, where the case would have been dropped after just a few days.’
‘The French police put the drowning down to Holly having drunk alcohol, but her shorts were found folded up by the side of the pool; that is not something you do if you are drunk enough to drown,’ her devastated mother added.
Construction project manager Mr Woodcock, 55, added: ‘I feel like standing outside the French Embassy with a placard saying, ‘If you want to murder anyone, take them to France, give them a couple of beers, and you’ll get away with it. They won’t care.’
The Woodcocks want to believe there was no foul play involved in Holly’s death but insist more investigations are needed to be sure.
Holly’s parents maintain that almost two years on, several questions remain unanswered.
The couple do not understand why it took 14 minutes for anyone to call emergency services after finding Holly’s body. The accounts of those at the villa do not match, and there has never been an explanation for why Holly was alone long enough to drown in the pool.
Holly, who was studying English and Multimedia Journalism at Manchester Met University, pictured with her mother Jo
Holly had been on holiday with her friend’s family villa in St Hilaire-la-Foret
A coroner found she had a nosebleed, which was unaccounted for, as well as bruises on her arm, thought to be from when she was dragged out of the pool.
French police did not request CCTV, did not interview all guests at the villa and only asked for statements from some the following day. Phones were also not checked.
Detectives later confirmed no extra tests were taken on Holly’s alcohol levels, with DNA samples which could help determine this or rule out a medical issue, were destroyed.
Holly, who was studying English and Multimedia Journalism at Manchester Met University, had been in France with a school friend.
Holly had spent the day of August 1 with a group at the beach before returning to the picturesque villa for a large dinner party.
Pictures from just before 1am show Holly dancing around the kitchen. Plans were then made to go for a swim, with all three girls going to get changed.
At 1.25am Holly’s friend sent a Snapchat message to Holly asking where she was. Five minutes later, she was found in the water.
One of the group started to begin resuscitation with an emergency call being made at 1.44am. Although Holly’s heart was briefly restarted, at 3.09 the time of death was called.
The Woodcocks want to believe there was no foul play involved in Holly’s death but insist more investigations are needed to be sure. Pictured: Holly with a puppy
Investigators said: ‘The coroner’s report indicates that the exact cause of death has not been determined, and that a traumatic cause of death has not been ruled out. Given the context of the report and his findings, the most likely cause of death is drowning.’
Holly’s body was returned to the family, and in a state of grief and shock, believing that officials had all they needed to continue their investigations, they cremated her – a decision which the Woodcocks now deeply regret.
Mr Woodcock added: ‘We will never get over this, but we won’t get closure until this has been properly investigated.
‘As it is, we are left wondering what on earth happened and why no one seems to care that a young woman has died.
‘There is not a lot we can do about the French giving up, but it’s hard to think that our government doesn’t care either. We just want someone to look at this and rule out foul play. And that can’t be ruled out unless someone really cares enough to properly investigate.
‘I can’t bear the thought of living out the rest of my days not knowing if one of, or some of the people present that evening had done something to contribute to my never seeing my daughter again.’
The couple’s MP Mr Francis told the Daily Mail: ‘I have been supporting the family since August 2024 and we are in a position where there remain two options open to the family in France.
‘I have the same concerns as the family regarding some aspects of the investigation into Holly’s death in France and clearly they still do not have the answers they deserve.
‘If this was your child you would not expect to have the issues, such as evidence being destroyed, discrepancies with timelines and DNA samples being destroyed.
‘There are a number of issues in the investigation and if I were Mr and Mrs Woodcock I would be asking the same questions and these are questions they need answers to.
‘It is the most heartbreaking of cases and Lee and Jo cannot move on until they have the answers they deserve. I have supported the family sadly for two years now and I will continue to do so.’
An FCDO spokesperson said: ‘We are supporting the family of a British woman who died in France in 2024.
‘Minister for Europe, Stephen Doughty, has also spoken to members of Holly’s family.’
