A housing association realised that a canal barrier was “unsafe” five months before a little girl fell through it and drowned.
Malika Hibu was pronounced dead at St Thomas’ Hospital on the evening of February 17, having been pulled from Regent’s Canal earlier that day.
An inquest into her death at St Pancras Coroner’s Court today (July 17) heard she had been able to unlock the front door to her family’s home at Crest Buildings, Wharf Road, without her mother noticing.
CCTV footage showed the little girl running towards the City Road Basin, a canal offshoot that backs directly onto the Peabody housing association estate.
Malika could be seen poking her head through a metal barrier, which consists of just two horizontal bars around half a metre apart.
Shortly afterwards, a splash could be seen, as the five-year-old girl fell into the canal.
Her mother, Huria Ali, told Coroner Mary Hassell that in 2019 she discussed with her neighbour the fact that the barrier next to the canal was “not safe for the children”.
Other neighbours reported telling Peabody that they had concerns about the barrier’s safety at around the same time, but were told that it was owned either by Islington Council or the Canal and River Trust.
The court heard that Peabody did not accept that the railings were “unsafe” until October last year, when a housing officer on a walkabout reported being “taken aback” by large gaps in the barrier.
The housing association sent an email to Islington Council’s director of housing, Ian Swift, sharing their concerns.
This email was passed on to the council’s director of public realm, Tony Ralph, but he never responded, even after a follow-up email from Peabody the week before Malika’s death.
What the housing association failed to realise was that Peabody, and not the council, was in fact responsible for the metal barrier.
Under the terms of the sale of the land for Crest Buildings, the Canal and River Trust retained ownership of the canal basin, but only up to the water's edge, and not anything on top of the canal wall.
To confuse matters further, at the time of Malika’s death, the canal basin was being leased out to Islington Council by the waterways charity.
Ms Hassell said it was clear the housing association did not appear to know where its boundary finished.
This meant no action was taken to improve the safety of the barrier in the years and months leading up to Malika’s death.
In her determination, the Coroner said the railing to the canal “afforded no real protection against the water” for a small child.
She added: “The housing association did not risk assess the barrier, did not act on complaints by residents, and, after finally noticing the barrier was unsafe, did not make any appreciable attempt to make the area safer.”
At the inquest, Peabody boss Tracy Packer acknowledged that the barrier should have been risk assessed, but denied that the housing association was responsible for Malika's death.
Peabody has since built a temporary fence next to the canal alongside Crest Buildings, and has said a permanent solution will be put in place by March next year, subject to planning approval.
A spokesperson for the housing association said: “This was a heartbreaking and tragic accident, and our thoughts remain with Malika’s family and friends as they grieve their terrible loss.
"We’ll continue to support local residents and will consider all the points raised in the coroner’s report.”
Ms Hassell also said that she would put together a ‘prevention of future deaths’ report for the housing association.
Another report will also be made, looking into how national and local planning policy could help prevent similar deaths.
Crest Buildings was given planning permission by Islington Council in 2015.
Coroner Hassell said: “I have had no evidence that there was consideration of the barrier as part of the development.
“If this is happening in Islington then it could be happening up and down the country.”
Cllr Kaya Comer-Schwartz, leader of Islington Council, said: “Malika’s death was a terrible tragedy, and our thoughts and prayers continue to be with her family and loved ones.
“We will carefully consider everything that has been said today, and throughout the inquest.”
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