AN inquest into the death of 39-year-old Marwo Kassim, who fell from the balcony of her third floor flat in Acton after an epileptic seizure, found that failure to provide her with safe accommodation was a cause.

Assistant Coroner Richard Furniss concluded that, although Marwo’s death was an accident, it happened because Ealing Council and London & Quadrant Housing Association had failed to provide her with a ground floor flat.

This was despite concerns over her safety being raised for several years.

Marwo was found seriously injured on the pavement below her flat in Acton in June 2022, having had a seizure and fallen from the third-floor balcony. She died from her injuries nine days later. 

She had lived alone in the flat, provided by L&Q, for nine years despite the risk of falling.

The three-day inquest in West London heard how a series of missed opportunities by the borough and L&Q, often related to poor communication between the agencies and with the family, led to a failure to provide Marwo with a safe, ground-floor flat.  

Recording a verdict of accidental death, Assistant Coroner Richard Furniss also found that a failure by Ealing Council to provide Marwo with a specialist epilepsy sensor possibly contributed to her death.

Marwo’s family were represented at the inquest by solicitor Sarah Westoby, from the law firm Leigh Day, and barrister Jim Duffy. 

Speaking on behalf of the family, Marwo’s brother, Nasir Kassim said: “We feel relieved and vindicated by the result of the inquest and are grateful to the coroner for his conclusions which will help us reach closure after the pain and sorrow caused by Marwo’s death.

“We have waited a long time for our voices to be heard but feel we have at last been able to highlight the failings and mistakes made by the authorities which sadly led to this tragic accident.”

In a statement, Ealing Council said: “We send our condolences to Ms Kassim’s family. Due to ongoing legal involvement, we are unable to comment further.”