The mother of a young man who fell to his
death from a balcony at his block of
flats in London is seeking urgent answers
as to how it could possibly happen.
Joshua Robbins died in January when he
leaned over the railing of a communal
balcony to check if his pizza delivery
had arrived.
The railing gave way and Joshua fell five
storeys to his death.
Now Josh's mum Fiona is demanding answers
and change. I spoke to Fiona and I
started by asking her to tell us about
Josh.
He was full of life and he absolutely was
so positive and happy-go-lucky, really.
He always had a smile. He always made
everyone feel seen, heard, recognised.
Like for example, like things like if he
saw a homeless person on the street, he'd
get down to their level, talk to them,
hold their hand, give them hope.
And like his dad sort of said promise the
money and then look at his dad to say, "Well,
man, give him the money and sort of
promise on his behalf."
But he was just he had a real innocence
about him.
Let's talk about that night because it
was a normal night at home with his dad
and they'd ordered in pizza.
Talk me through what you know about what
happened.
From what I know on Thursday, the 29th of
January, about half past eight, I believe
it was. The way their building is set
up, it's like a gated community.
So outside there's obviously an intercom
and he was just checking to see when the
buzz would go on if that was for him or
if it was just for that landing.
Because it is a tower block.
Yes. So there on the fifth floor, which
was the top floor pop from the roof terrace,
but they're the last flat block.
And he literally went out and put his
elbow onto the communal railings by the
lift.
And just to sort of put his head round
and go, "Oh, it's for us up here, like
just press, like it was given
instructions."
And the next thing that the railings just
gave way and Josh plunged five floors to
his death.
His dad heard the commotion screaming
from people that had witnessed it.
And literally he said he flew down the
stairs, he doesn't know how he didn't
fall like, but he got there and the
paramedics came really quickly.
But they said that, you know, his
injuries weren't compatible with life,
there was nothing they could do.
So it was completely catastrophic
incident that should never have happened
completely preventable in my opinion.
How's Josh's dad, because obviously like
you said, you weren't there.
He was inside just waiting for his boys
to come back to say the pizza.
100%. So it's, he's deeply, deeply
traumatised to the point where he, you
know, he's trying to process it.
I would say he's got a big dose of
survivor's guilt.
He's got a big dose of the "what ifs,
what if I hadn't done that, what if I'd
cooked, what if we hadn't?"
You know, and I think that's, that's a
normal response, but obviously I'm trying
to support him by doing a lot of the
front facing stuff because of how
vulnerable he is at the moment and
delicate and.
But like we all are in our own set of
grief, like it is just so hard to get
your head around.
I'm trying to find the eye cope through
doing a commit, doing something. I need
action. I need to put my hyper focus into
that and in previous employment, that was
my skill set anyway as campaigning and
comms.
So luckily I have those skills and I'm
putting them to use now is to get in that
direct contact and start people moving on
this and understanding our story better
than just,
because I don't want anyone to think Josh
was reckless because he really wasn't.
That could have happened to anybody.
All he did was lean on a belt.
Exactly, he literally just put his hand,
like his elbow onto it. So if it was that
old or not maintained properly that he
could just give it that that's terrifying.
And that sort of part of this campaign
now is does have mandatory standards of
safety for high-rise buildings that have
these setups or window boxes balconies is
that his death, his life mattered, his
death matters even more.
And it has to mean something. He can't
just disappear and have no reason behind
it. It needs to have someone held
accountable.
I'm asking for transparency. I'm not
looking. It's not about money because
there's no price on us. We've agreed that
we said that it's not going to fix this.
This is about it not happening anywhere
else.
Exactly. We want his legacy to be that he
has protected other people.
He saved lives.
Yes, exactly.
Well, Fiona, you've spoken about your
skill set, but I do have to say it's
still remarkable that you're sitting here
today. This happened on the 29th of
January, a matter of weeks ago.
You're a 23-year-old boy.
So I just want to say that that is
remarkable and is his mom.
I find that so impressive.
I mean, don't get me wrong. Last night
when I was flying into London and I was
looking down like I did start crying and
then I was embarrassed that people could
see me crying.
And I looked down like I just thought my
baby's down there somewhere and I don't
know where he is and he's on his own and
he's cold and he's...
But then the logical side of my brain
says that's just his vessel. He's not
there anymore.
And that's the only thing that brings you
comfort. But you're just trying to find
answers.
There is a police investigation ongoing.
There's a housing association involved
who say they are cooperating with the
police investigation.
So like you said, accountability and
answers are what you want and you're
going through the process.
However, in the meantime, you have talked
about your campaigning. No More Falls is
the name of your campaign.
Talk to me about your call to action,
what you want people to take from this
interview, from you talking so openly
about Josh's death.
Yes, so I was looking at what I could do.
I need something tangible, something that
I can cling on to.
And it is that I look at people in social
housing and I just think there's an air
probably from legacy within politics for
the last sort of decade or so
of it's another one off the list, just
shove them anywhere.
And when you look at, for example, that
building, how is this happening in like,
you know, a well-off country?
You know, most people would look to and
go, I want to live there.
And for the local MP for where your ex-husband
and son were living is a certain
circumstance in the country and you've
written to him.
You know, again, as part of this action
immediately within a matter of weeks.
What response have you had and do you
feel that the fact that the prime
minister is the MP for that area is worth
something?
Is currency for you in trying to get this
moving?
Absolutely. I wrote to him when I was in
London, I came over on the Tuesday after
the event and by the 6th of February, he
had actually replied,
which I was quite amazed at, to be honest,
knowing politics.
And it didn't seem like a holding letter
or just a general, you know, usual reply
of thanks for your email, we'll get back
to you within 10 working days.
I'd say it seemed really personal and it
did seem genuine.
And I think with his background from
working with the CPS and stuff and his
human rights, you know, I would like to
think that that compassionate leadership
will help and make a difference.
Like I say, I don't need platitudes at
the moment. I need someone to actually
grasp this along with the Mayor of London,
who I haven't heard from yet.
I want people to actually understand that
this isn't going to go away. I don't want
to hear lessons learned.
I don't want to be palmed off with
nonsense. I want to see actual action.
That's the least I deserve. Our family
deserves that. Josh's life mattered, so
his death matters even more so.
Well, a huge thank you to Fiona for
trusting us to tell Josh's story.
The Metropolitan Police had this to say.
They've told us that their investigation
remains in its early stages.
They say investigators are in the process
of liaising with expert witnesses,
including a forensic structural engineer,
as well as carrying our interviews with
witnesses and residents.
Pippa Fleetwood-Read, Chief
Executive at Islington and Shoreditch
Housing Association said,
"Joshua's tragic death at the end of
January has been deeply distressing
for everyone who knew him.
We know his death has had a profound
effect on his parents, family, friends
and neighbours, and we offer our
heartfelt and sincere condolences to
them at this incredibly difficult time.
We are doing everything we can to support
everyone living at Holland and Thurstan
Dwellings, including offering counselling
support,
having a daily on-site presence,
including a dedicated officer visiting
twice weekly to listen directly to any
concerns they may have.
We are keeping the residents informed by
sending a weekly written update.
We're not able to comment further while
the police investigation is ongoing."