Student Co Op Housing Roundtable

You are invited to a roundtable discussion at the Sydney Town Hall, co-hosted by STUCCO members and City of Sydney Councillor Sylvie Ellsmore.

The purpose of the roundtable is to bring together stakeholders who have an interest in supporting more student-led cooperatives. The roundtable will discuss a proposed campaign to establish another affordable, student-led cooperative at the University of Sydney - like STUCCO.

Where and when: Wed 10 December 2025, 3.30pm-5pm

Where: Treasury Room, Sydney Town Hall (enter via George St)

Hosted by: Skye de Vere and Yasmin Reiaz from STUCCO and Councillor Sylvie Ellsmore, Co-Chair of the City of Sydney Housing for All Advisory Panel

Catering: Light refreshments provided

RSVP essential: U0VsbHNtb3JlIHwgY2l0eW9mc3lkbmV5ICEgbnN3ICEgZ292ICEgYXU=

Access: The Sydney Town Hall main entrance is above the Town Hall train station and opposite the Town Hall light rail stop. Disability access is available through the Druitt Street entrance. Please advise if you would prefer to access through this entrance.

More background

Student housing in the inner city is increasingly expensive and hard to find. Cooperative housing is tenant-led, affordable housing. However, there are very few student cooperatives built or proposed to be built anywhere in Australia.

STUCCO is first, affordable student-led cooperative in Australia. Established in Darlington 30 years ago - with the support of students, academics, the University Sydney, the NSW Government and the City of Sydney - STUCCO still provides affordable rents for University of Sydney students today. It is a self-managed, inclusive housing. Read more about STUCCO here: https://www.stucco.org.au

STUCCO members and other University of Sydney students are developing a campaign for another student-run cooperative at Sydney University, and would love you to be part of the conversation.

The roundtable will discuss ideas for a new student-led cooperative. The University of Sydney has said it is committed to expanding affordable student housing - but there are few details available about the University’s plans, and (as yet) no commitment has been made to establish a new student-led cooperative. For example, International House on City Road is owned by the University of Sydney and has been vacant for years. It is one possible location for a new student cooperative.

The City of Sydney is supportive of both expanding cooperative housing and increasing the affordability of housing for students. Last term, the Council provided support to establish the first new inner city affordable housing cooperative in 30 years, a partnership with Common Equity and All Nations Housing. Co-Chair of Council’s Housing for All Advisory Panel – Clr Sylvie Ellsmore – is co-hosting the roundtable discussion.