Dr Paula Holland

Senior Lecturer

Research Overview

My research focusses on: the relationship between work, disability and health; barriers to disabled people’s employment; and interventions to support disabled workers’ employment, including workplace adjustments. Disabled people have lower employment rates than non-disabled people, and are also more likely to be employed in insecure, lower-skilled and low-paid work. These employment inequities have severe consequences for their financial independence, health and wellbeing, and provide a mechanism for producing and exacerbating social inequalities in health.

I am leading the funded by the Nuffield Foundation, which explores how remote and hybrid working can be designed to be inclusive of disabled workers’ needs and preferences. Our interim report can be accessed here: Beyond the Office? How remote and hybrid working can help close the disability employment gap. The final report was publishd March 2026 Breaking down barriers: How remote and hybrid work can support disabled workers and was covered in a Other outputs include a and highlighting some of our findings.

I am a member of the which aims to find cost-effective ways to reduce work disability among individuals with musculoskeletal disorders. I led a qualitative research for the Centre exploring the

I am co-Investigator on the of job retention vocational rehabilitation for employed people with inflammatory arthritis.

I have also conducted qualitative research and evidence synthesis on the role of workplace adjustments and organisational policies in facilitating work retention for people with musculoskeletal disorders.


  • 01/10/2023 → 31/07/2024
    Research

  • 02/01/2023 → 14/11/2025
    Research

  • 02/01/2023 → 28/02/2026
    Research

  • 01/09/2022 → 30/04/2023
    Research

  • 01/12/2021 → 30/06/2022
    Research

  • 01/11/2021 → 30/04/2022
    Research

  • 01/09/2020 → 31/05/2021
    Research

  • 01/10/2019 → 31/12/2026
    Research

  • 01/10/2019 → 31/03/2026
    Research

  • 01/07/2018 → 30/11/2018
    Research

  • 01/03/2018 → 30/11/2021
    Research

  • 01/09/2014 → 30/09/2016
    Other

  • 01/07/2014 → 30/06/2019
    Research

  • 01/10/2013 → 30/04/2015
    Research


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Consultancy


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Membership of committee

Rachel Earnshaw

Rachel Earnshaw

PhD student

  • Centre for Health Inequalities Research
  • Centre for Organizational Health and Well Being