The Cocoon

The Cocoon provides homes to young women who have experienced the out-of-home care system or homelessness. The Cocoon provides a home to recover, stabilise, develop life and living skills, and prepare for long-term housing.

The result of an 18 month project between Housing All Australians, HousingFirst and Bridge It, The Cocoon been made possible by the collective pro-bono work and donated products valued at over $1.5 million, from partners like builders Mirvac, Dulux, RPS and Smeg. Opened in October 2024, it looks and feels like a ‘real home’.

The heritage-listed property in St Kilda has been transformed into supportive accommodation with 16 self-contained apartments for young women aged between 17-21 who could otherwise face homelessness.

Carla Raynes, CEO of Bridge It said: ‘I have seen all kinds of horrific private rooming houses, with no locks on doors and cockroach infestations. The Cocoon looks like a high end Airbnb and not an accommodation for people who have experienced homelessness. The standard of the renovation in the apartments are so high, that it makes our young residents feel truly cared about. [It’s] truly a space where our residents can work on their recovery.

Housing All Australians was the catalysing force that brought the public and private sector partners together on this first of its kind project. As the owner and landlord of the property, HousingFirst manages the tenancy and maintenance side of things, while Bridge It provides the support the residents need.

This includes access to lived-experience peer mentoring, social worker support, cooking groups, and pathways into long term housing and employment. Plus, with a team member on site every weekday and dedicated communal spaces designed to bring the residents together, there’s often therapeutic activities taking place in ‘The Butterfly Room’ lounge, or one-on-one meetings in a sensory space.

All the studio apartments are offered to tenants on an initial 12-month lease, with rents capped at 30 per cent of the resident’s income, however most residents pay using Centrelink payments like Youth Allowance.

Many of the young women who now call The Cocoon home are teenagers who would have aged out of the foster care system. ‘From working in the sector, we could see that 17-year-olds were very at risk of homelessness,’ Carla says.

‘When a young person has been in residential care, they are exited on their 18th birthday. That means that young people were on occasions experiencing homelessness for the first time on their birthday.’

Instead of ending up in crisis accommodation or couch surfing, it means women like former resident Charlotte* are able to move into The Cocoon and find a ready-made-community waiting for them. In her time as a tenant, she completed her schooling, undertook a mechanic course, and found a job to support herself.

‘The Cocoon has offered me a safe and cozy space to be able to let my walls down and enjoy doing the little things in life. I have grown so much as a person in the past few months and having a little support group by my side,’ Charlotte says.

Carla says the ultimate goal of The Cocoon is to prove that it is possible to end the cycle of homelessness.

‘Working in an early intervention way can reduce the risk of our young residents going into prison, sleeping rough or ending up in psych wards. Our big dream is to continue to develop a model that is so effective that it is adopted across the country and plays a role in ending youth homelessness in Australia.’

Over $1.5 million in probono work and products donated to turn this heritage building into a home for 16 vulnerable young women.