The boy died after leaping from a Plaistow tower block window due to his inability to assess risk

A tower block pictured from the ground upwards — Jacobs House, Plaistow by David Howard, CC BY-SA 2.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0, via Wikimedia Commons

A five-year-old Plaistow boy who died in a fall from a tower block leapt from a window in the belief he could fly, owing to his autism and inability to assess risk an inquest has found.

Aalim Ahmed was killed instantly in the fall from his kitchen window on the 15th floor of Jacobs House in Plaistow on 16 May 2024.

Delivering his narrative verdict on the tragedy at East London Coroner’s Court, assistant coroner Ian Wade said: “Aalim was an active five-year-old boy who suffered from a diagnosed condition called autism, such as to render him incapable of making reliable judgments about his personal safety and abilities.”

There were contrasting accounts about the condition of the window presented at the inquest, and the assistant coroner said the window was “compromised” but he also said there was “no compelling reason why a landlord should’ve considered that placing this little boy on the 15th floor was inappropriate”.

“It wasn’t the fact that it was the 15th floor that was significant,” he said, “what was significant was that the windows had become compromised.”

Earlier, Aalim’s mother Sahara Osman, had told the inquest that her son’s death “could’ve been prevented” if Newham Council had addressed her concerns about windows in the flat. She said she didn’t believe the flat was safe when it was offered as temporary accommodation in 2023, given its height and her son’s suspected autism.

But the Council was exonerated from culpability by the inquest. In a statement, Councillor John Gray, Newham’s Deputy Mayor and Cabinet lead for housing said: “This was a tragic accident which resulted in the heartbreaking death of a young five-year-old child. Our thoughts continue to be with Aalim’s family and friends during this incredibly difficult time.”

He said the Council was grateful to the coroner for his thorough and fair hearing of the facts of this case.

In his narrative verdict the assistant coroner said the windows “were not used appropriately”. He described how Aalim had woken up in the early hours of 16 May 2024 and went from his bedroom to the kitchen where he climbed on to a chair and then on to the windowsill of an insecure double turn and tilt window.

“He opened the window and in a naïve belief that he could fly or alternatively could come to no harm he leapt from the open window,” said the assistant coroner.

Earlier, he described audio footage of the incident, which was played to the court as “poignant and destabilising.” He said the court was “faced with the horrifying prospect, but entirely supported by the evidence, that Aalim stepped out of the window” without realising it was a dan gerous thing to do.

Detective Inspector Jamie Humm giving evidence for the police told the court that the flat was “clearly a loving environment for a child”. He attended the scene on the morning of Aalim’s death, and said there was “no evidence, not even a suspicion” of harm from a third party or a crime committed.

The inquest also heard written evidence from Dr Kumar-Ricky Ahuja, a specialist community paediatrician, who diagnosed Aalim with autism spectrum disorder in June 2023.

He said the parents had “specifically asked if I could make a recommendation to the housing team for more suitable housing” on the ground floor and with outdoor space.

Dr Ahuja added that a recommendation for “more appropriate housing” was included in his report, which he advised Aalim’s parents to pass on to Newham’s housing team.

In evidence to the court, reported by Inside Housing, Paul Kitson, Newham Council’s Corporate Director of Housing said that the Council had no record of receiving Dr. Ahuja’s letter confirming the formal diagnosis of autism. He said if the Council had received this it would have carried out another suitability assessment of the temporary accommodation.

He also said the family’s months-long wait for repairs or maintenance to windows in the flat was “an unacceptable delay”.

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