Example photo by Pete Alexopoulos on Unsplash, not our project
Lambeth · London
Alcove Units in Clapham Park
Alcove units in Clapham Park: cupboards and shelves built into the alcoves beside a chimney breast. Every piece is made in our workshop and fitted in your home, with a spray or hand-painted finish.
- Alcoves that are wasted space
- A desk that tucks into an alcove
- Shop-bought shelving that doesn’t fill the recess
Alcove units designed for your room
How we make alcove units for Clapham Park
Period alcoves are rarely square. Walls bow, corners wander and floors slope. Each unit is made at our workshop to our measurements and scribed to the walls when we fit it, 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. If you are living with furniture that doesn’t fit the alcove and somewhere to keep books and records, alcove units made from birch ply and moisture-resistant MDF, painted by hand or sprayed can solve it.
Older houses tend to come with picture rails, tall skirtings and cornices, and alcove units need to meet those lines neatly. Homes built before 1919 make up a large share of the housing around Clapham Park, so those details are worth looking at closely at the measuring visit. The top line can stop at the rail or run on to the cornice, depending on the room.
A written quote follows the design visit. It sets out the design we’ve talked through, the materials and the finish, so it is clear what’s included.
- Place
- Clapham Park (SW4, SW2, SW12)
- Area
- Lambeth
- Prices
- Quoted for your room
- First step
- Design visit, then a written quote
- Made
- Made in our workshop and fitted on site
- Boards and paint
- MDF and birch plywood, painted
- Working days
- Weekdays, and Saturdays by prior arrangement
- Get in touch
- Send us a message
- Updated
- 27 October 2026
Alcove units in Clapham Park: local notes
Homes built before 1919 make up about 47% of the housing in the area around Clapham Park, with about 21% built between 1945 and 1972, based on the Valuation Office Agency’s 2025 council tax data. Each era brings its own kind of wall, ceiling height and floor, so it shapes the design from the first measurement. There are 38 entries on the National Heritage List within half a mile of the centre of Clapham Park. Original fireplaces, shutters and panelling are worth keeping where they survive, and alcove units can be designed to work around them. Red routes are run by TfL, with tight limits on where and when vehicles can stop. Where a home in Clapham Park is on or beside a main road, it helps to mention that during the design visit. We’ll plan where the van can stop.
For a flat near Clapham High Street station, the route in is measured as well as the room, and the sections are sized to fit it. The wider area includes historic houses like Carlyle's House, about 2.6 miles north-west. For a period home anywhere nearby, picture rails and cornices give alcove units a line to finish at. Close to Max Roach Park? Alcove units can be arranged to keep the window and the light clear.
Clapham Park is within the London Borough of Lambeth, about 1 mile north-east of Stockwell. Homes in Clapham Park are part of the area we cover for alcove units. We cover places right across Lambeth, large and small.
Postcode districts we cover here for alcove units: SW4, SW2 and SW12. Streets in the area include Lynn Road, West Road and Elms Road, and homes on each of them are within our area for alcove units. If you’re just outside Clapham Park, we also cover Grange Mills (1 mile south-west), Hyde farm estate (1 mile south), Brixton (1 mile east), Clapham (1 mile north) and Balham (1 mile south-west). Other parts of Lambeth we cover include Kennington (2 miles north), Streatham (2 miles south), West Norwood (3 miles south-east), North Brixton (2 miles north-east), Little Portugal (2 miles north) and South Bank (4 miles north).
Around Clapham Park
The streets we cover here include those near The Family School, Harris Academy Clapham and Ye Olde Windmill Public House. Clapham Park’s nearest station is Clapham High Street station, roughly 0.8 miles north of the centre. Nearby you’ll also find St James' Hospital (1.4 miles south-west) and Soseki Museum (0.9 miles north-west).
What it’s made from
Hand-painted finish
With a hand-painted finish, you see the colour in your own light before the final coat. It also means any filling around scribed edges is painted in one go.
Plinths and scribe strips
Most alcoves need scribing on both sides and sometimes at the top. It is what makes a fitted unit look fitted.
Neighbourhoods near Clapham Park
What else we make in Clapham Park
Flats, leases and landlords
In a flat, the route in matters as much as the room. We measure the stairs, landings, lift and doorways along with the room itself, so each section is sized to get through without a struggle.
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 at the measuring visit.
Questions we’re often asked
Can you fit alcove units to the uneven walls of an older house in Clapham Park?
Yes, that is normal in older houses: each piece is scribed to the wall and levelled at the base. We also work around skirting boards, picture rails and cornices. Fixings are chosen for the wall, whether solid brick or lath and plaster.
Is Clapham Park in the area you cover for alcove units?
Yes, we work across Lambeth, Clapham Park included, and across the rest of London. To get started, you can get in touch through our contact form with some details.
What happens when you come to measure?
We take full measurements, look at the walls and floors and work through the design together. We’ll also ask about access and parking, and afterwards we send a written quote.
How tall should alcove units be?
It depends on the room and the look you want. In a tall period room, units can stop under the picture rail or the cornice. We agree the height during the design visit.
Can the fitting be on a Saturday?
Yes, by arrangement. If a Saturday works better for you, say so when you contact us.
How do I get started?
Just get in touch through our contact form. It is useful to send rough sizes and a few photos, and we’ll arrange a design visit, followed by a quote in writing.
What affects the cost of alcove units
Every room is different, so every job is quoted on its own. This is what makes the difference:
- Doors and drawers, and how many
- The internal fittings
- The width and height of the space
- Spray painting or hand painting
The finish affects the cost: spray painting happens in the workshop, and hand painting can be done in your home. Your choice, along with the size and the fittings, is reflected in the written quote.
What we need to know
There’s no need for exact sizes or plans. It is enough to send:
- Pictures showing the full wall, from floor to ceiling
- Where you live, with the postcode
- How you want to use the space
- Approximate measurements of the space
The quote is built from the design visit. We take full measurements, see how true the walls and floors are and work through the design together. Afterwards, we send a written quote, so you can take your time with it. To book one, get in touch through our contact form.
Fitting day, step by step
Getting everything level comes first. Where the floor slopes, we bring the furniture up to level on adjustable feet or a plinth, which keeps the lines straight. After that, it is fixed to the wall using fixings that suit the wall, whether that is solid brick, lath and plaster or plasterboard. On fitting day in an older house, the main job is scribing to walls and levelling on floors that slope, so there’s some trimming and adjusting on site. Floors are protected, and dust is kept down as far as possible. It helps to tell us about parking at the design visit, as terraced streets are often busy.
- 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.
- We send a written quote setting out the layout, materials and finish. If anything needs changing, just tell us.
- 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.
How to prepare
- Let us know if your street is in a controlled parking zone
- Empty the space we’ll be working in
- Keep pets in another room while we work
Arranging a design visit
If you know what you want, say so; if you don’t, that is fine, and we can work it out together. At the design visit, we measure up and talk the design through with you, and the written quote that follows sets it out. To start, get in touch through our contact form.
Read more
Practical tips
Because fitted furniture stays put, a little upkeep goes a long way. Here are a few tips worth knowing:
- Decide what goes behind doors and what goes on show
- Clear the alcoves before the design visit if you can
- Note the sizes of large things you want to store
- Have any damp looked at before the units are made
Load the shelves evenly rather than piling weight in the middle. A full shelf of books is heavier than it looks.
Every so often, check that hinges and handles haven’t worked loose and adjust a door before a small rub becomes a mark.