Example photo by Pete Alexopoulos on Unsplash, not our project
Lewisham · London
Chinbrook Alcove Units
For homes in Chinbrook, we make alcove units from moisture-resistant MDF and birch plywood. Each piece is finished by spray or by hand, in the colour you choose.
- Cupboards in keeping with an older house
- Space for a growing book collection
- Toys and paperwork with no proper home
Alcove units in Chinbrook
About our alcove units in Chinbrook
Even a chimney that’s been blocked or capped needs some ventilation to help stop damp. Units are planned so any vent stays clear, rather than boxing it in. Any damp in the alcoves should be dealt with by the right trade before the units go in so the new furniture starts on a dry wall. Typical reasons to get in touch are a place for a small desk and shelving for books and records, and the answer is made at our workshop from MDF made to resist moisture and birch plywood, then spray-painted or hand-painted.
Ceilings in interwar houses tend to be lower than in Victorian ones, so alcove units are proportioned to the room rather than copied from a taller one. Where your home is one of the interwar houses or semis that are a big part of the housing around Chinbrook, the cornice may be plain or missing, so the furniture can run straight to the ceiling. The skirting is scribed around neatly.
A written quote is the clearest record of what we’ve agreed. It sets out the alcove unit designed for your room, its materials and its finish, and it is what the workshop builds to.
- Where
- Chinbrook (SE9, SE12, BR1)
- Borough
- Lewisham
- Price
- Quoted for your room
- First step
- A design visit: we measure and talk it through
- Making
- In our workshop, then fitted in your home
- Boards and paint
- MDF and birch plywood, painted
- Fitting days
- Weekdays, and Saturdays by arrangement
- Contact
- The contact form
- Page updated
- 27 October 2026
Tips worth knowing
Fitted furniture is part of the room, so it’s worth looking after. Here are a few tips worth knowing:
- Make a rough list of what the cupboards need to hold
- Check whether there is a vent in the chimney breast
- Consider whether the units should reach the ceiling
- Deal with any damp on the chimney breast first
Paint is dry to the touch well before it has fully cured. At first, go gently with the new paintwork: lift things onto the shelves rather than sliding them, and don’t scrub the surfaces.
Put coasters or mats under anything that holds water. Dry any spills quickly.
Nearby places to Chinbrook
What else we make in Chinbrook
Fitting day, step by step
Period rooms often have skirting boards, picture rails, cornices or coving for the furniture to meet. We cut and scribe the furniture around them on site, so it looks as though it was always there. How long fitting takes depends on the size and number of units, and the fitting days are set out in your quote. Clearing the room and the way in beforehand helps the day run well. On the day, we cover the floors first, then bring the sections in. The pieces are levelled, fitted to the walls and fixed back.
- You get in touch with a short description of the alcoves and your ideas, even if the design is only a rough idea so far.
- 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.
- Once you are happy, the units are made in our workshop.
- Fitting day: the units go in, are scribed to the alcoves and levelled on a plinth or feet. The finish is sprayed in our workshop or hand-painted on site, as agreed.
Preparing the room
- Let us know where the boiler and meters are
- Clear the walls of pictures and shelves
- Move furniture and belongings away from the wall
Getting a quote
Every quote follows a design visit. We measure the space, check the walls and floors and discuss what you’d like, then send a quote in writing. There’s no price list: each design is priced in writing after we’ve seen the space. To arrange a visit, get in touch through our contact form.
Advice
What affects the price in Chinbrook
The price for your room depends on:
- How square the room is
- Doors and drawers, and how many
- The finish: spray painted or hand painted
- How easy it is to get the furniture into the room
In London, parking can affect the price. Much of London is covered by controlled parking zones, so we may need a visitor permit, a paid bay or a suspended bay. Tell us about parking during the design visit, so we can plan for it.
What to send when you contact us
Ahead of the design visit, we will normally ask about:
- Pictures showing the full wall, from floor to ceiling
- Whether it’s a house or a flat, and if there are stairs or a lift
- Approximate measurements of the space
- Where you live, with the postcode
To make a start, send us a few details through our contact form and tell us which room you have in mind and roughly what you’d like. From there, we arrange a design visit to measure up and talk through your ideas, and send you a written quote afterwards.
What prompts alcove units in Chinbrook
For some, it is about books, records or a TV. An alcove unit can be shaped around what you own, with each shelf set to suit it.
We are often asked to help with:
- Clutter with nowhere to go
- A desk that tucks into an alcove
- Alcoves that are wasted space
- Units that sit well with original features
If you live in a flat close to Grove Park station, each piece is planned so it can be carried up and joined together in the room.
Questions to ask before you hire anyone
- Will the doors close with even gaps?
- Is it spray painted or hand painted?
- Where they’ll park and unload
- Will other trades be needed, and who arranges them?
Alcove units in Chinbrook: local notes
About 48% of the homes in the neighbourhood around Chinbrook went up between 1919 and 1939, and about 26% between 1945 and 1972, in the VOA’s 2025 council tax stock figures. For carpentry, the era of a house is a useful clue to how square its rooms are and what its walls are made of. Near the centre of Chinbrook, Historic England’s list includes Baring Hall Hotel and associated stable block (Grade II), about 0.5 miles west, and The Grange Eltham College Junior School (Grade II), about 0.6 miles north. If your own home is listed, works inside that affect its character, such as fixing into or removing original joinery, can require listed building consent. An early word with the council’s conservation officer is the best first step. Terraced houses are home to about 41% of households in the area around Chinbrook, going by Census 2021 figures from the ONS. Many London terraces have a chimney breast and alcoves in the main rooms, which suit alcove units built to their exact widths.
The wider area includes historic houses like Eltham Palace, about 1.3 miles north-east. If your own home is a period one, the alcoves beside a chimney breast are the natural place for alcove units. If you live in a period home close to Jubilee International Church, walls that bow and floors that slope are why alcove units are scribed to fit rather than pushed into place.
Chinbrook is about 4 miles north-west of New Cross, in the London Borough of Lewisham. Wherever you are in Chinbrook, the process is the same: a design visit, a quote in writing, furniture made at our workshop and fitting in your home. Across Lewisham, we cover Chinbrook, along with the rest of the borough.
We make alcove units across the SE9, SE12 and BR1 postcode area. If your home is on a street such as Luffman Road, Riddons Road and Cobland Road, or close by, we can visit to measure up for alcove units. Chinbrook sits close to the A2212, and we plan where the van can stop before fitting day. Nearby, we also make alcove units in Mottingham (1 mile north-east), Grove Park (1 mile west), Coldharbour (1 mile east), Middle Park (1 mile north) and Sundridge (1 mile south). Other parts of Lewisham we cover include New Cross (4 miles north-west), St Johns (3 miles north-west), Deptford (4 miles north-west), Catford (2 miles west), Lewisham (3 miles north-west) and Surrey Canal (5 miles north-west).
Around Chinbrook
In Chinbrook, that includes homes near Haberdashers' Aske's Knights Academy and Colfe's School, among other places. There’s a railway station in Chinbrook itself: Grove Park station. Well-known places in the area include The Glades (2 miles south) and Eltham Community Hospital (1.6 miles north-east). For a walk, there is The Tarn.
Flats, conversions and lettings
If the property is let, we’ll need access agreed with the tenants. A letting agent can arrange this on a landlord’s behalf, and the written quote can go to whoever needs it.
Mansion blocks and purpose-built blocks often have house rules about lifts, entry systems and when trades can come in. Let us know about them during the design visit, so fitting day is planned around them.
Questions we are often asked
Is Chinbrook in the area you cover for alcove units?
Yes, Chinbrook is within the area we cover, which takes in all of Lewisham and the rest of London. We start with a design visit to measure the room and talk through what you need, followed by a quote.
Can parking be tricky on fitting day in Chinbrook?
It can be, as controlled parking zones cover much of inner London. A van may need a visitor permit, a pay-and-display bay or a suspended bay, which the council arranges, often with notice. Let us know what parking is near you at the measuring visit.
Can alcove units be fitted to uneven walls?
Yes. Each alcove is measured during the design visit, make the units in our workshop and trim the edges on site to meet the wall, which closes the gaps you’d see with standard furniture.
Do you move sockets for alcove units?
Electrical work is not something we do. New or moved sockets are a job for your electrician, ideally before fitting, and some electrical work in homes is covered by Part P of the Building Regulations. We can plan cut-outs and cable routes in the units around them.
What happens when you come to measure?
It’s a chance to measure properly and talk through what you’d like. We also check the walls and floors and note radiators, sockets and other things in the way, and the written quote comes afterwards.
How long does it take to fit alcove units?
It depends on how many alcoves there are and how tall the units go, and your quote sets out the fitting days. We’ll talk you through what fitting day involves before we start.