Example photo by Pete Alexopoulos on Unsplash, not our project
Bexley · London
Falconwood Alcove Units
For homes in Falconwood, 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.
- Units that sit well with original features
- Bowed walls and sloping floors
- Bare alcoves beside the fireplace
Need alcove units in Falconwood?
Alcove units in Falconwood: what you get
Most Victorian and Edwardian terraced houses have a chimney breast in the main rooms, with an alcove on each side. Built-in alcove units put that space to work as cupboards and shelving that look as though they belong there. Where a room in Falconwood has a pair of alcoves, each alcove gets a unit designed for it, starting with a design visit to measure. We make alcove units from birch plywood and moisture-resistant MDF with a spray-painted or hand-painted finish, and the things people most often want solved are standard units leaving gaps at the sides and cupboards in keeping with an older house.
A good part of the housing around Falconwood is interwar, semi-detached or detached. If yours is a 1920s or 1930s house, the front room may have a bay window at one end and a chimney breast on the side wall, and that layout shapes where alcove units work best. Walls in houses of that age are normally straighter than in Victorian ones, though they’re still checked and scribed where needed.
A written quote is the clearest record of what we have agreed. It sets out the alcove unit designed for your room, what it’s made from and how it is finished.
- Where
- Falconwood (DA16, DA15, SE9)
- Area
- Bexley
- Prices
- Quoted for your room
- To begin
- We visit, measure, then quote
- Made
- Made in our workshop and fitted on site
- Boards and paint
- MDF and birch plywood, painted
- Fitting days
- Weekdays (Saturdays if arranged)
- Enquiries
- Send us a message
- Last updated
- 27 October 2026
Flats, conversions and lettings
If you live in a flat, getting the furniture in is planned from the start. We measure the stairs, landings, lift and doorways not just the room, so each section is sized to get through without a struggle.
For flats on red routes or busy main roads, getting the furniture from the van to the door needs planning. TfL runs the red routes, and the stopping rules are strict, so it’s worth raising at the measuring visit.
Also near Falconwood
Also in Falconwood
Could you do it yourself?
Long shelves are where off-the-shelf often struggles. How much a shelf bends depends on its span, depth and load, and long runs need a thicker shelf, a lip along the front or a support. That’s something we plan for in the design.
Off-the-shelf furniture can be a sensible choice. In a room with square walls and standard sizes, it can work well.
From workshop to your room
You will not need to do much on the day. We need someone to let us in at the start, and it is useful to have the room cleared beforehand, as agreed at the measuring visit. From there, we protect the floors, bring the furniture in and get on with the fitting. How long fitting takes depends on how many alcoves there are and how tall the units go, and your quote sets out the fitting days. Semis and detached houses often have a front path or a side gate, which can make carrying in easier. We measure the path, any steps and the front door as part of the route. Floors are covered from the door to the room.
- You contact us with a few details about the chimney breast and alcoves.
- We visit to measure the alcoves top, middle and bottom, and check the floor for level, then go through the design with you.
- You get a written quote for the units, materials and finish.
- The units are made at our workshop from moisture-resistant MDF and birch plywood, leaving a scribing allowance where they meet the walls.
- 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
- Keep pets out of the room and the hallway
- Leave a clear route from the front door to the room
- Tell us about any meters, fuse boards or boilers in the area
How to get a quote
Getting a quote starts with some details: the room, rough measurements and some pictures if you have them. To send them, fill in our short enquiry form. We will then arrange a design visit and follow it with a written quote.
Advice
Built-in living-room furniture in Falconwood
About 73% of the homes in the streets around Falconwood went up between 1919 and 1939, and about 13% between 1945 and 1972, according to Valuation Office Agency council tax figures (2025). That matters for alcove units, as the build era decides whether a wall is solid brick, lath and plaster, block or plasterboard. Red routes are run by TfL, with tight limits on where and when vehicles can stop. If your home in Falconwood is on or near a main road, tell us during the design visit. It lets us plan the stop before fitting day. About 61% of households in the neighbourhood around Falconwood live in detached or semi-detached houses, based on Census 2021. In a semi or detached house, a driveway, where there is one, can make unloading easier.
If you live near Shoulder of Mutton Green, alcove units can be arranged to keep the window and the light clear. Danson House, about 1 mile east, is one of the historic houses in the wider area. If your own home is a period one, the alcoves beside a chimney breast are the natural place for alcove units. For an older house near Bishop Ridley Church, walls that bow and floors that slope are why alcove units are scribed to fit rather than pushed into place.
Falconwood is part of the London Borough of Bexley, about 2 miles south of Sidcup. We work across all London boroughs and the City of London, and Falconwood is part of that. In Bexley, Falconwood is one of the places we cover.
We make alcove units across DA16, DA15 and SE9 for alcove units. Whether you live on a street like Hook Lane, Gordon Road and Kent Avenue or on one nearby, we can arrange a design visit for alcove units. We also cover the places around Falconwood: Blackfen (1 mile south), East Wickham (1 mile north), Avery Hill (1 mile south-west), Shooter's Hill (1 mile north-west) and New Eltham (2 miles south-west). Elsewhere in Bexley, we also cover Sidcup (2 miles south), Erith (4 miles north-east), Bexley (2 miles south-east), Belvedere (3 miles north-east), Northumberland Heath (3 miles east) and Lessness Heath (3 miles north-east).
What’s near Falconwood
The streets we cover here include those near Harris Academy Falconwood and The Plough and Harrow pub, among other places. The nearest railway station is Welling station, about 0.5 miles north-east of the centre. Nearby you’ll also find Memorial Hospital (1.4 miles north-west) and Greenwich Borough Museum (1.8 miles north).
What it’s made from
Shelves
Shelves can be fixed in place or set on adjustable supports. Fixed shelves add stiffness to the unit, while adjustable ones give you room to change things.
Birch plywood
Birch plywood helps shelves stay straight under books across a broad recess. Thickness is chosen to suit the span and the weight.
Made for the room, or bought in a box?
Bespoke furniture isn’t instant: it needs a design visit, a quote and time in the workshop. What you get is a unit planned for your alcove. Walls in interwar houses are straighter than in older ones, but rarely perfect, so standalone furniture can still lean or leave gaps. Fitted furniture is scribed and levelled on site.
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.
Why us?
- Spray painted or hand painted, in the colour you choose
- 300+ projects completed
- Made in our workshop, then fitted in your home
- Fitted tight to walls that aren’t straight
Take a look at bespoke vs off-the-shelf and what to look for in a quote.
Questions we’re often asked
Is Falconwood in the area you cover for alcove units?
Yes. We cover all of Bexley and the rest of London, and Falconwood is part of that. The first step is a design visit, where we measure and talk through the design, and then we send a quote.
I live near Welling station. Is that in your area?
Yes, homes across Bexley and the rest of London are within the area we cover. To get started, you can get in touch through our contact form with a few details about the room.
Is it possible to have a desk built into one alcove?
Yes. Many people use one alcove for a desk and the other for cupboards. The desk is planned around the way you work.
What happens to the chimney vent when alcove units go in?
Any vent in the chimney breast is kept clear when we design the units. Even a blocked chimney needs some ventilation to help keep damp away, so we never box a vent in.
What paint finish can I have on alcove units?
Either a spray-painted or a hand-painted finish. Spray painting gives a smooth, factory-like finish. We’ll help you choose at the design visit.
Do I need permission in a conservation area?
Not normally. Conservation area controls are mostly concerned with the outside of buildings, and fitted furniture inside a house doesn’t normally need planning permission. Listed buildings are different: check with the council’s conservation officer first.