A PRACTISING Muslim says he was ‘trapped in his home’ after Bournemouth council took all his shoes.

Olcay Kurulay, who keeps his shoes in the corridor outside his West Howe flat for religious reasons, was alarmed to find them all missing on Thursday morning.

The 35-year-old security guard, of Pilot Hight Road, says the council told him the shoes had been removed as they were a fire hazard and charged him £25 to get them back.

The doormat he keeps his work shoes and two pairs of trainers on is allowed to stay because he needs it, he was told.

Mr Kurulay, who moved in last May, said: “For religious reasons we cannot take shoes inside the house.

“People are sick outside or spit on the floor and there’s dog mess. We leave shoes because we pray inside.

“It’s the same with the mosque.”

At first he thought the shoes had been stolen, until a neighbour said they saw a council worker earlier.

Mr Kurulay says a housing officer told him the shoes were a fire hazard and tenancy agreements ban items being kept in the hall of the block.

Mr Kurulay said: “I’d have thought ‘item’ meant wardrobes or bicycles or old fridges. It’s just shoes. It does not stop my neighbours’ safety.”

He added: “I said: ‘If there is a fire now, how can I go outside because you took my shoes away? This is wrong. The door mat is an item as well.’ “They said: ‘You need that’ and I said: ‘Well I need my shoes as well.’ “It does not make any sense.”

No mention was made of Mr Kurulay’s shoes during an inspection two weeks ago, he said, when a neighbour was asked to move a pot plant from the hall.

Mr Kurulay has special safety shoes to wear to work at Poole Magistrates Court, but had to go in wearing flip-flops on Thursday.

He said: “Everyone was laughing and thought the council had been pathetic. It basically goes against diversity and religion.”

Items could 'block fire escape route'

Council policy forbids tenants from storing personal items in communal areas because it could block a fire escape route and cause a hazard, a spokesman said.

Signage within the communal area clearly states the council’s policy and is also covered within the terms of the tenancy agreement, he added.

The council’s established equality and diversity panel of residents, including those from the Bournemouth Islamic communities, give advice on policies.

He added: “We appreciate that it is customary in the Islamic faith to have a space allocated for footwear in the property before entering the private area. “In this case it is understood to be the entrance hallway of the flat itself. The flat effectively ends at the communal hallway which, for fire evacuation purposes, must be kept completely clear.”