Local Authority Emergency Accommodation
Rapid private accommodation for emergency rest centres and local authority response.
Cocoon Relief gives resilience teams, emergency planners and housing officers a way to create rapid private accommodation capacity in suitable buildings, rest centres, car parks, hardstanding, rough ground, serviced temporary sites or other emergency settings — for evacuations, severe weather, fires, floods and short-notice accommodation pressure.
Illustrative deployment visualisation — community hall rest centre with numbered Cocoons in an organised layout
Civil contingency context
From open hall to private capacity, at short notice.
Local authorities run rest centres and emergency provision in community halls, leisure centres, other suitable buildings, and increasingly on outdoor sites such as car parks, hardstanding, rough ground and serviced outdoor sites. Open-plan or open-ground sleeping arrangements can offer numbers, but rarely privacy.
Cocoon Relief allows resilience teams, emergency planners and rest centre managers to convert suitable buildings or outdoor sites into private, warm, protected accommodation areas — without permanent construction, with units that can be cleaned, packed, stored and redeployed for the next event.
When it applies
Reusable contingency capacity for emergency response.
Flood and storm evacuation
Private accommodation within rest centres or on serviced outdoor sites for residents displaced by flooding or storm damage.
Fires and explosion incidents
Rapid private capacity for households displaced from homes or estates following fire or major incident.
Severe weather provision
Warm, insulated private space during cold weather plans, heat events or other severe weather episodes.
Major evacuations
Capacity for civil contingency events requiring large-scale temporary accommodation at short notice.
Temporary housing pressure
Short-term flexible accommodation capacity in suitable council buildings or on serviced outdoor sites while longer-term placements are arranged.
Pre-positioned contingency stock
Compactly stored units held by emergency planning teams, ready for activation when required.
Where it works
Suitable buildings, rest centres and outdoor emergency sites.
Cocoon Relief is designed to be deployed into suitable buildings or outdoor sites already used (or available) for emergency response — including car parks, hardstanding, rough ground and serviced outdoor sites. Each location is assessed for floor area or footprint, exits and access, ventilation where relevant, power and surrounding welfare provision.
- Village halls
- Leisure centres and sports halls
- Community centres
- Warehouses
- Unused council buildings
- Schools (out of term, where appropriate)
- Reception buildings
- Car parks and hardstanding
- Rough ground and open ground
- Serviced temporary outdoor sites
- Outdoor evacuation and emergency sites
Public welfare angle
A private space during emergency accommodation.
Evacuated residents are often distressed, exhausted and travelling with children, elderly relatives or pets. A bunk in an open hall provides somewhere to lie down, but rarely privacy, warmth or rest.
Cocoon gives each household or individual a defined, enclosed and warm personal space within the emergency setting, supported by the relevant on-site welfare, housing or resilience team.
Cocoon can provide a protected private space inside a building or outside on a serviced or emergency site, depending on the incident, available land and operational support.
For resilience and emergency teams
Operational fit.
- Rapid deployment within approximately 10 minutes per unit
- Indoor or outdoor deployment — buildings, car parks, hardstanding, rough ground or serviced outdoor sites
- No permanent construction or building modification
- Cleaned, packed and redeployed between events
- Reusable and flexible across different incidents and seasons
- Compact storage between events — held at logistics hubs
- Scalable from small rest centres to larger venues
- Compatible with existing rest centre welfare procedures
- Defined layout planning for circulation, fire and welfare access
For residents
A more protected evacuation experience.
- Private, enclosed personal space
- Insulated floor, walls, roof and door
- Body-heat warming from compact internal volume
- Wind kept out once closed, useful where deployed outdoors or in exposed settings
- Space for belongings, documents and medication
- Separation for families, elderly residents and vulnerable people
- A place to sleep, recover and regain control after a difficult event
Discuss local authority use.
We welcome conversations with resilience teams, civil contingency leads, emergency planners and rest centre managers.