Yahoo News Coroner sounds alarm over suicide risk at London university accommodation after student falls to death
A coroner has raised the alarm after a London undergraduate fell to his death from an unsecured window at student accommodation in North London. Chenyang Li, a 23-year-old finance student, took his own life by jumping from a friend's apartment at Scape Bloomsbury on September 30, 2023. An inquest held at St Pancras Coroner's Court on April 5 recorded a conclusion of suicide.
Chenyang - who was studying a BSc in Statistics, Economics, and Finance at UCL - let himself into the flat near Russell Square at around 8.30am and immediately went to the window, climbed out, and fell to the concrete below. He died from multiple severe injuries. A police investigation found the window had been opened to to 55cm, wide enough for Chenyang to slip through.
In a prevention of future deaths report to Scape Living Student Accommodation, based in North Yorkshire, Assistant Coroner for Inner North London, Melanie Lee, said the window did not appear to have a restrictor at the time of Chenyang's death.
Ms Lee pointed out Scape Bloomsbury is accredited by the National Code of Standards for Larger Developments, but did not appear to adhere to paragraph 6.30, which states 'All windows above ground-floor level will be fitted with stops to prevent over-opening'.
Ms Lee added: "Scape Bloomsbury is one of a number of is part of Scape Living Student Accommodation, a provider of purpose designed, student accommodation.
"The window Chenyang jumped from does not appear to have been fitted with any, or sufficient, form of window restrictors at all or as required under the National Code of Standards accreditation," she wrote.
Scape Living Student Accommodation has until June 17 to respond to the coroner's findings. They were approached for comment but did not respond at the time of publication.
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