Staff at Rochdale Boroughwide Housing (RBH) claim they had no idea Awaab Ishak was living at his family home, his inquest has heard. The toddler died on December 21, 2020, having suffered a cardiac arrest due to fatal breathing difficulties which were believed to have been caused by mould at the property on Rochdale's Freehold estate, which is owned and managed by RBH.
He had only recently turned two years old. Awaab's inquest at Rochdale Coroners Court had previously heard that he was living in the one-bedroom flat, at the Ilminster block, with dad Faisal Abdullah and mum Aisha Amin - sleeping in a cot in his parents' bedroom.
But on the fourth day of evidence at court today (November 9), the court heard from several staff who dealt with Mr Abdullah as he repeatedly raised the alarm about damp and mould at the flat, who claimed they believed he was living alone. Crucially, those staff include a disrepair manager who inspected the property five months before Awaab died, and told court he would have acted to remove the mould he found if he knew the toddler lived at the property.
