Christian Weaver represents Aalim Ahmed’s family at inquest into his high-rise tower death
26 August 2026
The inquest concluded on Monday (24 August 2026) at East London Coroner’s Court (pictured). Credit: Mark Large / Shutterstock.
Garden Court North’s Christian Weaver represented the family of Aalim Ahmed at the inquest into his tragic death, after the five-year-old fell from the 15th floor of a high-rise social housing flat in Plaistow, East London in May 2024.
During the inquest, which took place at East London Coroner’s Court, Assistant Coroner Wade found that Aalim died after he jumped from the window believing he could fly, in part due to his autism and inability to assess risk.
In his narrative conclusion delivered on Monday (24 August 2026), the Coroner also found that the ‘double turn and tilt’ window had been “compromised”, BBC News reported.
Sahra Osman, Aalim’s mother, told the inquest that she had reported multiple complaints to Newham Council over several months, including her fears that the window opened too wide.
An engineer sent to carry out an inspection and overhaul of the windows and handles by Newham Council in December 2023 told the inquest that he believed they were functioning.
Family statement
The below statement was prepared by Aalim’s parents, Makail Ahmed and Sahra Osman, in conjunction with Christian Weaver.
“Aalim was our son, and we loved him more than words can ever properly express. Everything we did as his parents was about trying to keep him safe, particularly because he was autistic and had no sense of danger.
From the beginning of our tenancy at 61 Jacobs House, we experienced serious problems with the property. When we first moved in, there was no water or electricity. We also repeatedly raised concerns about the windows, which could open far too widely with minimal effort. We were terrified about what this could mean for Aalim.
The Council knew why we were so frightened. Its records contained information, provided three years before Aalim’s death, which referred to his suspected autism, stated that he had no sense of danger and recorded a history of him throwing himself down stairs. After Aalim was formally diagnosed, we repeatedly told Council call handlers that there was an autistic child living in the property. Our fear was that Aalim could throw himself from one of those windows.
We repeatedly reported our concerns and asked for help. People came to our home and we were told that the windows needed to be overhauled and that handles needed to be changed. Those reports and visits are documented, but those recommended works were not carried out.
After waiting more than seven months from when we first raised concerns about the windows, some work was eventually carried out. But from our perspective, the danger we had been reporting was never resolved as the windows could still open far too widely with minimal force.
As Aalim’s parents, everything we did was about protecting him and we would never have done anything that could have further compromised the safety of those windows. Any parent caring for an autistic child with no sense of danger will understand the constant vigilance that requires. Keeping Aalim safe occupied our world.
We could not have loved Aalim more, and we do not believe we could have tried harder to keep him safe.
We believe with all our hearts that we will see him again one day. We are blessed with two beautiful children, and our daughter reminds us of him every single day. It is bittersweet. We are constantly reminded of what we have lost, but at the same time, we see so much of him in her. Part of him will always be with us, and we love that more than words can say. She looks so much like him, and even the things she does at her age remind us of him. It feels like having a little part of him here with us, and in that way, he will always be a part of our family.
What happened has shown us that the system has many flaws and that things are not always taken seriously enough. We know this first-hand. Many people struggle when dealing with the council, and we sincerely hope that something can be learned from what has happened to our family.
No parent should ever have to bury their child. It is not the natural order of life. It is not normal, and it is a pain that no parent should ever have to know.
We will carry him with us every day – in our hearts, in our memories, and in the little reminders of him that surround us. He will always be loved, always be missed, and always be a part of our family.
Our only ask now is that no other family has to go through the devastation that we have. We did everything we felt we could to protect our son, and we will always believe that Aalim should still be here”.
Christian Weaver was instructed to represent Aalim’s family by Terry Wilcox and Beth Stanhope of Hudgell Solicitors.
Additional media
ITV News – Boy, five, died after jumping from ‘compromised’ tower block window
BBC News – Boy died after leaping from window, inquest finds
The Mirror – ‘You killed my son! Flat fall boy mum breaks down as inquest rules he tried ‘to fly’
For further information, please contact Alex Blair, Communications Manager at Garden Court North Chambers: ablair@gcnchambers.co.uk
