An emotional inquest found that little Aalim Ahmed jumped to his death from the window of his family's 15th floor social housing flat in East London, with the verdict leaving his mother distraught11:07, 26 Aug 2026Updated 11:34, 26 Aug 2026The parents of a five-year-old autistic boy were left heartbroken when an inquest found their son jumped to his death from the window of their 15th floor flat because he believed he could 'fly'.‌Little Aalim Ahmed's parents, Sahra Osman and Makail Ahmed, broke down at East London Coroner's Court when the coroner found that the windows of their social housing flat in Plaistow, east London - which Ms Osman had complained about - "were not used appropriately".‌Recording a narrative verdict after the tragedy on May 16, 2024, 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.‌"In his naive and autistic fearless brain he had no concept of danger and this marvellous belief he could fly."After his death, the hearing heard how grief-stricken mum Ms Osman was found on her bed with her arms wrapped around herself, saying, "I asked to be moved and nobody listened to me."‌She 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 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 December 17 2023.Now, in a harrowing statement, the family says they feared Aalim - who had a history of throwing himself down the stairs - would jump from the windows and doubled-down on their claims that their worries were not fully addressed.‌"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," they said."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."‌All the windows were closed before the family, which also included her toddler son and a newborn girl, went to bed the night before. Ms Osman denied any suggestion she may have "forced" the window open to cope in hot weather."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," the continued. "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.‌"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."The coroner said he did not find a basis for issuing a report to prevent future deaths, adding: "It wasn't the fact that it was the 15th floor that was significant, what was significant was that the windows had become compromised."Ms Osman and Mr Ahmed, however, believe that they were let down by the system.‌"What happened has shown us that the system has many flaws and that things are not always taken seriously enough," the said. "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."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.‌"We could not have loved Aalim more, and we do not believe we could have tried harder to keep him safe. 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."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."In a statement, Newham Council's Statutory Deputy Mayor and Cabinet Member for Housing, Councillor John Gray, said: "This was a tragic accident which resulted in the heartbreaking death of a young 5-year-old child.Article continues below"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."After the verdict was delivered in court, a broken Ms Osman fled the court and erupted in anger at council legal representatives outside, shouting "You killed my son!" over and over again. Her devastated partner tried to wrap his arms around her to calm her before her family took her back inside.While Aalim's death was found to be caused by an intentional jump, last year, an assessment carried out by the National Child Mortality Database (NCMD) determined that, between April 2019 and May 2025, 16 children under the age of 11 died after falling from windows or balconies in rented and temporary housing. Twelve of the youngsters were under the age of five years old.