Example photo by Pete Alexopoulos on Unsplash, not our project
Newham · London
Canning Town Alcove Units
Cupboards and shelves built into the alcoves beside a chimney breast, designed for your room in Canning Town. We measure, design and quote first, then make it in our workshop and fit it.
- Room to work in an alcove
- Toys and paperwork with no proper home
- Walls too uneven for standard furniture
Ask about alcove units in Canning Town
How we make alcove units for Canning Town
One alcove can be given over to a desk, with shelves above and a drawer or cupboard below. It is a neat way to work from home without giving up a whole room. We plan the desk height and depth with you, and leave a route for cables to reach the sockets. If your home has tired cupboards in the alcoves and alcoves that are wasted space, alcove units made from moisture-resistant MDF and birch plywood, finished by spray or by hand can solve it.
A large share of the homes around Canning Town date from 2000 onwards, and newer homes rarely come with any built-in shelving or media storage. We plan alcove units around the existing sockets and aerial points, with cable routes built in. Plasterboard on studs takes fitted furniture well, as long as the fixings suit it.
If the job needs another trade, like an electrician or a plumber, we’ll tell you, so it can be arranged before fitting day. Our quote covers the carpentry: the design, the materials and the finish.
- Where
- Canning Town (E16, E13, E6)
- Borough
- Newham
- Cost
- Quoted for your room
- First step
- Design visit, then a written quote
- Making
- Workshop-made, then fitted
- Materials and finish
- MDF and birch plywood, painted
- Working days
- Weekdays, and Saturdays by arrangement
- Contact
- Our contact form
- Updated
- 27 October 2026
What happens on fitting day
However carefully a piece is made in the workshop, it still has to meet the room, and fitting day is where that happens. Walls in older homes are rarely flat or square, so we scribe the edges by hand to follow the wall, until the line is tight. How long the fitting itself takes depends on the size and number of units, and your quote sets out the fitting days. Fitting day starts by covering floors and setting out the sections. Each piece is levelled and fixed to suit plasterboard or block. Hand-painted finishes can be completed once the furniture is in.
- 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.
- We send the design, materials and finish in a written quote.
- 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.
- At fitting, we set each unit level on a plinth or feet and trim that edge to follow the wall.
Getting ready for fitting day
- Point out meters, boilers and fuse boards near the furniture
- Take down pictures, mirrors and shelves from the wall
- Leave a clear route from the front door to the room
Starting with a design visit
A quote begins with some details from you: the room, rough measurements and some pictures if you have them. When you’re ready, drop us a line using the contact form. After that, we arrange a visit to measure and go through the design, then send a quote in writing.
Advice
Living-room carpentry in Canning Town: local notes
The biggest shares of homes in the neighbourhood around Canning Town were built since 2000 (about 38%) and between 1973 and 1999 (about 24%), according to Valuation Office Agency council tax figures (2025). Each era brings its own kind of wall, ceiling height and floor, so it shapes the design from the first measurement. Entries on the National Heritage List near the centre of Canning Town include Warehouse K (Grade II), under half a mile south, and Warehouse W (Grade II), about 0.5 miles south. If your own home is listed, internal works that affect its character, like fixing into or removing original joinery, may need listed building consent. It is worth speaking to the council’s conservation officer before the design is final. More than a third of the homes in the area around Canning Town (about 38%) were built since 2000, according to Valuation Office Agency council tax figures (2025). Newer homes typically 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.
If you live in a period home close to St Cedd's Church, picture rails and cornices give alcove units a line to finish at. For families living near Rosetta Primary School, alcove units can be planned with low cupboards for toys and higher shelves for everything else.
Canning Town is in the London Borough of Newham, about 1 mile north of Plaistow. We design and make alcove units for homes in Canning Town and across Newham. We cover places right across Newham, large and small.
In E16, E13 and E6, the process is the same as anywhere else in London. You will find streets here like Ivy Road, Star Lane and Bell Lane, and homes on each of them are within our area for alcove units. Canning Town sits close to the A1020. If your home is on one of them, tell us at the measuring visit, as some main roads have strict stopping rules. Other places close to Canning Town include Custom House (1 mile south), Plaistow (1 mile north), Limmo Peninsula (1 mile west), West Silvertown (1 mile south) and Leamouth (1 mile west). Across the rest of Newham, our area takes in Stratford (2 miles north-west), Forest Gate (2 miles north), East Ham (2 miles north-east), Maryland (2 miles north-west), Upton (2 miles north) and Plashet (2 miles north-east). Being one of the larger places in Newham, Canning Town is covered for alcove units and everything else we make.
Near you in Canning Town
In Canning Town, that includes homes near The Tidal Basin Tavern, Royal Docks Academy and The Royal Docks Community School. Canning Town has its own railway station: Custom House station. A little further out are Albert Dock Seamen's Hospital (0.5 miles east) and West Ham United Football Club Museum (1.4 miles north-east).
Also near Canning Town
Other services in Canning Town
Tips worth knowing
Fresh paintwork takes a while to cure fully, so treat it gently at first. Beyond that, these tips help:
- Plan any new sockets with your electrician before fitting
- Make a rough list of what the cupboards need to hold
- Look for a chimney vent that needs to stay clear
- Tell us about parking and access at the design visit
Keep a record of the colour for future touch-ups. Small marks on a hand-painted finish are easy to touch up, and it is useful to keep a little of the paint.
Use a mat under plants, vases and drinks to stop rings and water marks on the paint. Dry any spills quickly.
Is it time for alcove units?
Others want a proper home for books, records or a TV. We can plan an alcove unit around exactly what you have, with each shelf set to suit it.
People normally get in touch with us about things like these:
- Everyday clutter left on show
- Empty alcoves either side of the chimney breast
- Space for a growing book collection
- Tired cupboards in the alcoves
Queen's House, about 2.7 miles south-west, is one of the historic houses in the wider area. If your own home is a period one, walls that bow and floors that slope are why alcove units are scribed to fit rather than pushed into place.
Choosing a carpenter
- How doors and drawers are fitted
- Will the quote be in writing?
- How they handle walls that aren’t straight
- Is it spray painted or hand painted?
How it’s made
Spray-painted finish
Spray painting is done in the workshop, giving a smooth, even, factory-like surface. It works on simple doors and on more traditional ones.
Birch plywood
We often use birch plywood for drawer boxes too. It is painted to match the rest of the unit, or the edge is left as a detail.
When you need someone else
It’s useful to know what’s outside our work before you plan:
- Any structural work on the chimney breast
- Plastering or repairing loose plaster in the alcoves
- Treating damp in the chimney breast or walls
Not sure whether your space suits alcove units? You can use our contact form and we’ll tell you. How a job runs, step by step.
Materials and parts
- Scribed side panels
- Panelled or flat doors
- Spray-painted finish
- Birch plywood
- Adjustable shelves
- Hand-painted finish
- Moisture-resistant MDF
Your questions about alcove units in Canning Town
Can you fit furniture in a home close to Custom House station?
Yes, homes across Newham and the rest of London are within the area we cover. You can tell us about the room on our contact form to arrange a design visit, and tell us about parking and access at the same time.
How do you fit alcove units in a flat in Canning Town?
We measure the route in not just the room: the stairs, landings, lift and doors. The furniture is made in sections that fit the stairs and lift, and put together in the room. If your building has rules on lift booking or working hours, or your lease needs consent for alterations, it is worth checking those early.
Can you fit a desk into an alcove?
Yes. One alcove can take a desk with shelves above and a drawer or cupboard beneath. Height and depth are agreed with you, with a route left for cables.
Do you work on Saturdays?
Yes, we can arrange Saturdays. Just mention it when you get in touch, and we will see what we can do.
How do I get a quote?
Simply send us a few details through our contact form. It is useful to send rough measurements and a few photos, and we will arrange a design visit.
Can alcove units be fitted to uneven walls?
Yes. We measure each alcove carefully during the design visit, then the units are built in our workshop and scribed to the walls when we fit them, so there are no awkward gaps.