Newham Council has welcomed the findings of an inquest into the death of a five-year-old boy who died after jumping from a 15th-floor tower block window.

Aalim Ahmed died instantly when he fell from a kitchen window at a residential block in Plaistow, east London. His distraught father Makail Ahmed rushed from the top-floor temporary social housing flat and discovered his body shortly before 6am on 16 May 2024.

Aalim’s mother Sahra Osman has described their son’s death as “preventable” and blamed Newham Council, saying she had reported safety concerns about the flat on multiple occasions.

Contrasting accounts about the condition of the windows at Jacob’s House tower block were heard at the inquest into the boy’s death.

An engineer sent by Newham Council to carry out an inspection and look at overhauling the windows and handles said they were functioning when he saw them on 17 December 2023.

In contrast, Ms Osman had a list of complaints spanning several months which included her fears the windows were opening too wide and she did not have a key, the inquest heard.

Assistant coroner Ian Wade, sitting at East London Coroner’s Court, said the windows “were not used appropriately”.

Delivering a narrative conclusion to the inquest, he 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.

“In the early hours of 16 May 2024… he awoke and went from his bedroom to the kitchen, he climbed onto a chair and then onto the windowsill of an insecure double turn and tilt window.

“He opened the window and in a naive belief that he could fly or alternatively could come to no harm he leapt from the open window… he died at the scene.”

Mr Wade said he did not find a basis for issuing a report to prevent future deaths, adding: “I find there was no compelling reason why a landlord should’ve considered that placing this little boy on the 15th floor was inappropriate.”

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

In a statement, John Gray, cabinet member for housing, Newham Council, 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.

“We are grateful to the coroner Ian Wade KC for his thorough and fair hearing of the facts of this case, which have at times been very difficult to hear and revisit.”

Photo: Jacob’s House, Plaistow (Copyright: David Howard)