Southwark · London
Alcove Units in Southwark
From one end of Southwark to the other, we design and make alcove units for your room. We visit, measure and talk it through before we quote.
Alcove Units in Southwark
Alcove units across Southwark
What it covers: cupboards and shelves built into the alcoves beside a chimney breast. Find your neighbourhood in the lists below for local details, or get in touch to arrange a design visit.
Largest neighbourhoods
What else we make in Southwark
- TV and media units
- Fitted wardrobes
- Window seats
- Fitted cupboards
- Loft storage
- Bespoke kitchens
- Fitted home offices
- Under-stairs storage
- Built-in bookshelves
- Walk-in wardrobes
- Wall beds
Postcodes in Southwark
Alcove units in Southwark: how it works
Few alcoves in older houses are truly square. Walls bow, corners wander and floors slope, often all at once. We make each unit in our workshop to the measurements we take, then scribe it on site, so the sides meet the wall closely rather than showing a dark line. A plinth or adjustable feet take up any slope in the floor. Most enquiries start with furniture that doesn’t fit the alcove and clutter with nowhere to go, and the answer is built in our workshop from MDF made to resist moisture and birch plywood, then spray-painted or hand-painted.
You are welcome to ask questions while we work. The design, materials and finish were settled before anything was made, so fitting day is about putting it in place carefully and leaving everything tidy. How long fitting takes depends on the size and number of units, and the fitting days are set out in your quote.
- You get in touch and describe the alcoves you want to fill.
- We visit to measure the alcoves top, middle and bottom, and check the floor for level. Then we go through the design together.
- We send the design, materials and finish in a quote in writing.
- In our workshop the units are made from moisture-resistant MDF and birch plywood, with a little extra left on the edges that meet the wall.
- On fitting day we level the units and scribe the edges so they follow the line of the plaster.
Quotes in Southwark
Because every job is different, the cost is set out in a written quote after the visit. Size, the number of doors and drawers and the internal fittings make the biggest difference to the price.
Why homeowners in Southwark choose us
- A spray or hand-painted finish
- Edges scribed to follow your walls
- We visit, measure and go through the design before we quote
- Made in our workshop, then fitted in your home
Starting with a design visit
Every quote follows a design visit. We measure the space, check the walls and floors and discuss what you’d like, and the written quote comes after. There’s no price list: each design is priced in writing after we’ve seen the space. To book a design visit, tell us about the room on our contact form.
Local landmarks in East Dulwich
We fit furniture in homes around Dog Kennel Hill School, The Charter School and Brunswick Park. Also close by are The Latter Rain Outpouring Revival Church (within half a mile north-east), The Charter School East Dulwich (a few minutes’ walk south-east) and The Fox on the Hill pub (within half a mile north-west). East Dulwich has its own railway station: East Dulwich station. Nearby you’ll also find Dulwich Community Hospital (close by, under half a mile south-east) and House of Dreams Museum (under half a mile south-east). Open spaces near East Dulwich include Centre for Wildlife Gardening and Knight's Hill.
Living-room carpentry across Southwark
Across Southwark, a living room might be a double reception room in a terrace or a single open-plan space in a block. Alcove units can take on either, from a pair of alcoves to a full wall. You choose the colour, and whether it’s sprayed in the workshop or painted by hand.
In Southwark, the largest groups of homes date from the years since 2000 (about 28%) and before 1919 (about 26%), in the VOA’s 2025 council tax stock figures. Knowing roughly when a home was built helps, because walls and fixings change from one era to the next. A quarter or more of the homes in Southwark (about 28%) were built since 2000, in the VOA’s 2025 council tax stock figures. Newer homes normally have plasterboard stud walls and open-plan rooms, often with no chimney breast, so the fixings go into the studs, or heavier pieces stand on the floor. About 64% of households in Southwark live in purpose-built flats, based on Census 2021. For a flat, alcove units are made in sections sized for the stairs, the lift and the doors. Many blocks have rules on lift booking and working hours, so check with the managing agent before fitting day.
We make fitted furniture for every kind of home in Southwark, from Victorian terraces to new-build flats. Wherever you live, it starts with a visit and a quote.
East Dulwich: If you live in a period home close to The Latter Rain Outpouring Revival Church, the alcoves beside a chimney breast are the natural place for alcove units. If your home is as old as some of the listed buildings nearby, like Champion Lodge, original features like shutters, panelling and fireplaces are worth designing around. For a listed home, fixing into original features may need listed building consent.
Bespoke alcove units or ready-made?
To be fair, a standalone bookcase or cabinet can go with you to your next home. Fitted alcove units stay with the house and remain when you move on. Which suits you depends on your plans.
What to check before you book
- How the furniture will be finished, and where
- Whether you will get a quote in writing, not just a figure
- Who does any electrics, plumbing or gas work
- Whether the quote follows a visit to your home
What it’s made from
Moisture-resistant MDF
MDF doesn’t have a grain to show through the paint, so a painted finish looks even and calm. We choose the moisture-resistant grade for fitted furniture.
Plinths and scribe strips
A plinth lifts the cupboard off the floor and hides any slope. Its height can match the skirting board.
Could you do it yourself?
It’s worth being honest about cost: flat-pack is typically cheaper to buy. Bespoke makes more sense where the room is awkward, the space is valuable or you want the furniture to look built in.
What you pay for with bespoke is mainly the fit: scribed edges, a level base on an uneven floor and furniture that meets the ceiling, skirting and picture rail. Off-the-shelf furniture cannot usually do that in an older room.
Looking after your furniture
Painted fitted furniture is easy to look after with a little care. A few things help it stay looking good:
- Make a rough list of what the cupboards need to hold
- Talk to your electrician early if you want new sockets
- Bring the sizes of anything that has to fit in the cupboards
- Think about how the units meet the picture rail and cornice
Load the shelves evenly rather than piling weight in the middle. Books weigh more than most people expect, and an even load keeps the shelves straight.
Put coasters or mats under anything that holds water. Wipe up spills straight away.
Flats, leases and landlords
Blocks of flats often have their own rules on lift bookings, entry systems and times for trades. Tell us about them at the design visit, so fitting day is planned around them.
In a flat, the route in matters as much as the room. At the design visit, we measure the stairs, the landings, any lift and the doors, so each section is sized to get through.
Questions from Southwark
Can an alcove unit include a desk?
Yes. A desk in one alcove, with shelves above and storage below, works well in many rooms. Height and depth are agreed with you.
Do you cover Southwark?
Yes. We work across all 32 London boroughs and the City of London, Southwark included.
Will you travel outside London?
No. We only take on work in London.
Do I need permission in a conservation area?
Not normally. Conservation area controls are mainly about the outside of buildings, and fitted furniture inside a house does not normally need planning permission. Listed buildings are different: check with the council’s conservation officer first.
Do I need to be in when you fit?
Someone needs to let us in. It is good to have someone there at the end to look over the work with us.
Is an outside wall a problem for fitted furniture?
It needs a little planning: ventilation behind and inside the furniture helps avoid condensation and mould. We don’t treat damp, so any damp should be sorted before fitting day.
Which finishes are there for alcove units?
We offer spray painting in the workshop and hand painting on site. A sprayed finish is very smooth and even; a hand-painted one is easy to touch up later. We will help you choose at the design visit.