Example photo by Pete Alexopoulos on Unsplash, not our project
Croydon · London
Broad Green Alcove Units
Few London rooms are perfectly square, and we scribe the furniture to follow the walls. We make alcove units for homes in Broad Green, each designed at a visit to your home.
- Bare alcoves beside the fireplace
- A place for a small desk
- Toys and paperwork with no proper home
Alcove units in Broad Green
DIY, flat-pack or bespoke
The real difference is in the fit: edges scribed to the wall, a level base on a sloping floor and a neat line where the furniture meets the ceiling. Off-the-shelf furniture can’t normally do that in an older room.
Off-the-shelf furniture can be a sensible choice. In a room with square walls and standard sizes, it can work well.
Alcove units in Broad Green
Many people choose cupboards at low level and shelves above them. Closed cupboards hide everyday clutter, and the shelves are for books and favourite objects. The top of the cupboard makes a useful surface at a comfortable height. We set the heights to suit the room and what you will store. If your home has storage that suits a period room and room to work in an alcove, that is what alcove units are for, made from moisture-resistant MDF and birch plywood, finished by spray or by hand.
London homes run from Victorian terraces and interwar semis to mansion blocks and recent flats, and a home in Broad Green could be any of these. Because walls and floors change with the age of a house, the design of alcove units starts at the design visit. A period house may need scribing to bowed walls, while a newer flat may need fixings for plasterboard.
The written quote puts the design visit in writing: the layout and internal fittings, the materials and the finish. If you’d like to change anything, it’s easier before the furniture is made.
- Location
- Broad Green (CR0, CR7, CR90)
- Area
- Croydon
- Prices
- Quoted for your room
- How it starts
- We visit, measure, then quote
- Made
- Made in our workshop and fitted on site
- Materials and finish
- Painted MDF and birch ply
- Working days
- Weekdays (Saturdays if arranged)
- Contact
- The contact form
- Updated
- 27 October 2026
Flats, blocks and rented homes
A lot of London’s terraced houses are now converted flats, which often brings a shared hall and tight turns on the stairs. We plan the size of each section around it, after measuring the route at the measuring visit.
Some blocks ask for notice before trades arrive, often through a building manager or concierge. Lifts sometimes need to be booked, and the lift size helps decide how big each section can be. Tell us about it when you contact us.
Neighbourhoods near Broad Green
More for homes in Broad Green
How we price alcove units
What it costs comes down to the materials and the time involved. That depends on:
- Doors and drawers, and how many
- The width and height of the space
- How square the room is
- Access to the room, like stairs, lifts and narrow halls
Access to the room makes a difference too. Several flights of stairs, a small lift or a narrow hall can mean smaller sections and more carrying, which the quote allows for. The price comes in a written quote, worked out from the measurements and the design you choose.
Getting in touch
What helps most when you first contact us:
- Whether it is a house or a flat, and if there are stairs or a lift
- Any ideas or images you’ve saved
- How you want to use the space
- Where you live, with the postcode
A quote begins with some details from you: the room, rough sizes and some photos if you have them. When you are ready, drop us a line using the contact form. We’ll then arrange a design visit and follow it with a quote in writing.
Fitting day, step by step
Before anything is fixed, we set the furniture level. Floors are often out of level, so adjustable feet or a plinth take up the difference, and that keeps the doors and shelves true. After that, it’s fixed to the wall using fixings that suit the wall, whether that is solid brick, lath and plaster or plasterboard. If you live in a block, check any rules on lifts, deliveries and working hours; for a house, steps, paths and parking are the things to mention. Either way, the day is planned at the design visit. Saturdays can be arranged.
- You get in touch with a short description of the alcoves and your ideas.
- We visit to measure, look at how the walls run and note the skirting, picture rail and any vent.
- You receive a quote with the design, the materials and the paint finish.
- The cupboards and shelves are then built in our workshop, using moisture-resistant MDF and birch plywood.
- We fit the units, scribe them to the walls and set them level.
How to prepare
- Leave a clear route from the front door to the room
- Let us know about parking near your home
- Take down pictures, mirrors and shelves from the wall
Getting a quote
We quote each job for the room it’s going into, after the design visit. Because every room is different, the quote comes after the design visit, when we’ve measured up and talked through the design. For a quote, tell us about the room on our contact form.
Advice
Bespoke or off-the-shelf?
Off-the-shelf units can work in an alcove, and they normally cost less to buy. The catch is the fit: standard sizes seldom match the alcove, and walls that are not straight show up every gap. A bespoke alcove unit is made to your measurements and scribed to the plaster. Off-the-shelf furniture comes in set sizes, and real rooms rarely match them, so it leaves gaps at the ends and empty space above. Fitted furniture is made to the room.
The inside of the furniture affects the price as well: rails, shelves, drawers and dividers all add work. We’ll talk through what you need inside at the design visit, then set it out in the quote.
Why choose us
- Built in our workshop and fitted in your home
- Edges scribed to follow your walls
- A spray or hand-painted finish
- More than 300 projects completed
Living-room storage in Broad Green
In the streets around Broad Green, the largest groups of homes date from before 1919 (about 38%) and between 1919 and 1939 (about 22%), on the Valuation Office Agency’s council tax figures for 2025. The age of a home tells us a lot about its walls, floors and ceilings, and so about how alcove units are fixed and fitted. 4 conservation areas have at least part of their area within a mile of the centre of Broad Green. England has around 10,000 in all, and their controls are mostly concerned with the outside of buildings, so fitted furniture inside a house doesn’t normally need planning permission. TfL’s red routes have strict stopping rules. Where a home in Broad Green is on or beside a main road, it helps to mention that at the measuring visit. That way we can plan where to load and unload.
Living in a block of flats near West Croydon station? Then the lift, the stair turns and the front door all set the largest piece that can come in. If you live near Waddon Ponds, shelving that stops short of the window keeps the view of the green. Near listed buildings like West Croydon United Reformed Church, less than half a mile west of the centre of Broad Green, older homes may keep original joinery that alcove units can be designed around. If your own home is listed, check with the council before fixing into original features.
Broad Green is about 1 mile north of Thornton Heath, in the London Borough of Croydon. We cover Broad Green as part of our work across Croydon. We list Broad Green among 32 places we cover in Croydon.
We make alcove units across CR0, CR7 and CR90. You will find streets here like York Road, Nova Road and Lion Road, and homes on each of them are within our area for alcove units. Other places close to Broad Green include Old Town (1 mile south), Beddington (2 miles south-west), Waddon (2 miles south), Bandonhill (2 miles south-west) and Wallington (2 miles south-west). Other parts of Croydon we cover include Coulsdon (5 miles south), Purley (4 miles south), Upper Norwood (2 miles north), Selhurst (2 miles north-east), South Norwood (2 miles north-east) and Norwood New Town (2 miles north). Broad Green is one of the larger places we cover in Croydon.
Landmarks near Broad Green
In Broad Green, that includes homes near Harris Invictus Academy Croydon, The Archbishop Lanfranc School and The Half Moon pub. Broad Green’s nearest station is West Croydon station, roughly 0.6 miles south of the centre. Well-known places in the area include Croydon University Hospital (within half a mile north-west) and Centrale Croydon (0.8 miles south). Green spaces nearby include Duppas Hill.
Questions we’re often asked
Do you cover homes near West Croydon station?
Yes. We cover all of Croydon and the rest of London. You can tell us about the room on our contact form to arrange a design visit, and let us know about parking and access at the same time.
Will parking be an issue for fitting furniture in Broad Green?
It depends on the street, as many London boroughs run controlled parking zones. A van may need a visitor’s permit, a paid parking bay or a bay suspension, which the council arranges, often with notice. It’s useful to let us know about parking during the design visit.
How do I get a quote for alcove units in Broad Green?
It is easiest to message us from the contact page and let us know about the room. We then arrange a design visit, measure up and send a quote in writing.
Do photos help?
Yes. Pictures help us understand the room before the design visit. It helps to show radiators, sockets and anything else on the wall.
What paint finish can I have on alcove units?
There are two options: a spray-painted finish done in our workshop, or a hand-painted finish done on site. Either way, the colour is agreed with you. Spraying gives a smooth, even surface, and hand painting is easy to touch up.
Can the two alcove units be different?
That’s your choice. A matching pair balances the chimney breast, but you might want a desk on one side and cupboards on the other. Shared details, like the plinth and paint colour, keep them looking related.