Mrs Holly Parrott

Accessibility Leader and Researcher

Holly is the Senior Manager of Accessibility at The Open University and a PhD researcher specialising in accessibility in Higher Education. Her work brings together strategic leadership, research, and extensive experience supporting disabled people across education, community organisations, not-for-profits, and corporate settings. She is particularly interested in how accessibility operates in practice, and in questioning the assumption that meeting formal standards alone leads to meaningful access.

Holly contributes regularly to conferences, sector events, and media discussions on accessibility and organisational practice, offering evidence-informed insight into complex issues, accessibility strategy, and delivery at senior levels. Her career includes senior leadership roles, including chief executive positions, which have shaped a strong understanding of how organisational decisions can remove or reinforce barriers for disabled people. She is known for clear analysis, sound judgement, and the ability to support senior teams in reaching decisions that are both workable and effective.

Her doctoral research focuses on accessibility strategy and delivery within Higher Education, with particular attention to BSL interpreting. Her wider interests include accessibility strategy, organisational behaviour, leadership in not-for-profits, and the relationship between policy, culture, and inclusion. A consistent theme in her work is connecting research with strategy and delivery, strengthening the link between academic inquiry and the everyday realities of disabled people and the staff who support them.

Colleagues describe Holly as someone who quickly understands complex situations and provides practical, evidence-based guidance. She has led organisations through substantial improvements in accessibility, policy development, and operational practice, and advises leadership teams across sectors on creating environments that work in practice for disabled people. Her academic work has been published in peer-reviewed and professional outlets, and has been recognised for its depth and originality. She was shortlisted for the Postgraduate Researcher Award in 2024.