Parents demand answers into death of daughter, 20, found at bottom of pool in French villa

The grieving parents of a university student who mysteriously drowned in the swimming pool at a friend’s villa in France are calling for a full investigation into her death.

Holly Woodcock, 20, from Erith, south London, went to stay at a schoolmate’s holiday home in August 2024 but tragically never returned.

On the fifth day of the journey, on August 2, at around 1.30pm, after a party with her neighbours, Holly, described as a ‘beautiful and sociable 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 at 3.09am.

An inquest carried out by French authorities determined that he had drowned at the property in St Hilaire-la-Foret on the West Coast of France, but the exact cause of death could not be determined without a traumatic cause of death being ruled out.

Despite this, police closed the investigation after just over a week, despite a growing number of unanswered questions and conflicting witness accounts of the evening’s events. Officers did not perform significant tests to confirm how drunk Holly was.

Basic evidence, such as DNA samples, that can rule out a medical event and His swimsuit was destroyed. Phones were not checked and CCTV was never obtained.

Holly’s family expressed concern that witnesses were not questioned until the next day and some key witnesses were never spoken to. His lawyers also claim that the timeline of the night’s events is incomplete.

Objections to reopen the case were rejected. The State Department said they could not help the family due to restrictions on intervening in another country’s criminal and judicial processes.

Holly’s mother Joanna and father Lee are appealing to the British Government to help French police reopen the case

Important evidence such as DNA samples and swimsuits that could rule out a medical event were destroyed

Now Holly’s parents Lee and Joanna have asked the Prime Minister to help them find out what happened to Holly and put pressure on their French counterparts. The family’s MP, Daniel Francis, also raised the issue in the House of Commons in a bid to get some answers.

In a letter to Sir Keir Starmer, the heartbroken couple said: ‘We do not want special treatment; just so that the case can be investigated properly.’

Speaking to the Daily Mail, school governor Mrs Woodcock, 57, who was diagnosed with cancer just three months after Holly’s death, said: ‘I want to say to Keir Starmer: ‘If this was your daughter you wouldn’t have been treated this way, the case would have been dropped just a few days later.’

‘French police attributed the drowning to Holly’s drinking, but Holly’s shorts were found folded by the pool; “That’s not something you do when you’re so drunk you’re drowning,” her distraught mother added.

Mr Woodcock, a 55-year-old construction project manager, added: ‘I want to stand outside the French Embassy with a banner that says: ‘If you want to kill someone, take them to France, give them a few beers and you’ll get away with it.’ They won’t care.”

The Woodcocks want to believe there was no malicious intent in Holly’s death but insist further investigation is needed to be sure.

Nearly two years later, Holly’s parents argue, many questions remain unanswered.

The couple don’t understand why it took them 14 minutes to call emergency services after finding Holly’s body. Statements from those in the villa do not match, and no explanation is given as to why Holly was left alone in the pool long enough to drown.

Holly, who studies English and Multimedia Journalism at Manchester Met University, is in the photo with her mother Jo

Holly was on holiday at her friend’s family villa in St Hilaire-la-Foret.

The coroner found he had an unexplained nosebleed as well as bruises on his arm, thought to have been caused when he was dragged from the pool.

The French police did not request security cameras, did not interview all the guests in the villa, and only asked for statements from some of them the next day. Phones were also not checked.

Detectives later confirmed that no tests were conducted on Holly’s alcohol level, and that any DNA samples that might have helped determine this or ruled out a medical problem were destroyed.

Holly, who studied English and Multimedia Journalism at Manchester Met University, was in France with a school friend.

Holly had spent August 1 at the beach with a group before returning to the picturesque villa for a huge dinner party.

Pictures taken just before 1am show Holly dancing in the kitchen. Plans were then made to go swimming and all three girls changed.

At 1.25am, Holly’s friend sent Holly a Snapchat message asking where she was. He was found in the water five minutes later.

One of the groups started resuscitation with an emergency call at 01.44. Although Holly’s heart was briefly restarted, the time of death was given at 3.09am.

The Woodcocks want to believe there was no malicious intent in Holly’s death but insist further investigation is needed to be sure. Pictured: Holly and her puppy

Investigators said: ‘The coroner’s report indicates that the exact cause of death has not been established and a traumatic cause of death has not been ruled out. ‘Given the context and findings of the report, the most likely cause of death is drowning.’

Holly’s body was handed over to the family and, to their grief and shock, they cremated her, believing the authorities had everything they needed to continue their investigation; it was a decision the Woodcocks now deeply regret.

Mr Woodcock added: ‘We will never get over this, but we will not close the matter until it is properly investigated.

‘So we wonder what’s going on in the world and why no one cares about a young woman dying.

‘There’s not much we can do about the French giving up, but it’s hard to imagine our government doesn’t care either. We just want someone to look at this and rule out foul play. And it can’t be ignored unless someone actually cares enough to investigate properly.

‘I can’t bear the thought of spending the rest of my days not knowing whether one or some of the people who were there that evening did something to contribute to my never being able to see my daughter again.’

Mr Francis, the couple’s MP, told the Daily Mail: ‘I have been supporting the family since August 2024 and we are in a position in France where two options are open to the family.

‘I have the same concerns as the family about aspects of the investigation into Holly’s death in France and they have clearly still not received the answers they deserve.

‘If this were your child, you wouldn’t expect problems such as destruction of evidence, inconsistencies in the timeline and destruction of DNA samples.

‘There are a number of issues in the investigation and if I were Mr and Mrs Woodcock I would ask the same questions and these are questions that need to be answered.

‘This is the most heartbreaking case of all and Lee and Jo will not be able to move on until they get the answers they deserve. Unfortunately, I have been supporting the family for two years and will continue to do so.’

The Daily Mail has contacted the FCDO for comment.