following his parents' split, he and his mother leave walford in april 1989 but ali snatches him in may, causing sue to have a breakdown and be sectioned. little ali lives with his father, who struggles as a single parent and employs an unregistered child minder to look after little ali while he works. when health visitor carmel jackson (judith jacob) notices that little ali is not being looked after properly, she investigates and finds that the child minder is neglecting the children in her care, leaving them alone all day. unable to look after his son, ali sends little ali to live with relatives.