Example photo by Pete Alexopoulos on Unsplash, not our project
Bromley · London
Goddington Alcove Units
Walls in older London homes are rarely straight, so we scribe the furniture to follow them. Our work on alcove units in Goddington starts with a design visit, and everything is built in our workshop.
- Old alcove cupboards that have seen better days
- Storage that suits a period room
- Toys and paperwork with no proper home
Need alcove units in Goddington?
Is it time for alcove units?
For some, it is about books, records or a TV. We can plan an alcove unit around exactly what you have, with each shelf set to suit it.
If you recognise any of these, it is worth talking to us:
- Units that sit well with original features
- Everyday clutter left on show
- Bowed walls and sloping floors
- Somewhere to keep books and records
If your home is one of the older houses near Christ Church, walls that bow and floors that slope are why alcove units are scribed to fit rather than pushed into place.
What to check before you book
- Whether the quote follows a visit to your home
- Have they thought about parking near you?
- How doors and drawers are fitted
- Whether the route into your home has been checked
Alcove units in Goddington: what you get
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 cupboard top gives you a ledge for a lamp, a speaker or a plant. Heights are agreed with you to suit the room and your things. We make alcove units from moisture-resistant MDF and birch plywood, finished by spray or by hand, and the usual reasons to get in touch are shop-bought shelving that doesn’t fill the recess and units that sit well with original features.
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. If yours is one of the interwar houses, semis or detached homes that make up much of the housing around Goddington, there may be little or no cornice, which lets the furniture run straight up to the ceiling. The skirting is scribed around neatly.
If the job needs another trade, such as an electrician or a plumber, we will tell you, so it can be arranged before fitting day. Our quote covers the carpentry: the design, the materials and the finish.
- Location
- Goddington (BR6, BR5)
- Area
- Bromley
- Cost
- Quoted for your room
- To begin
- A design visit: we measure and talk it through
- Made
- Made in our workshop and fitted on site
- Materials and finish
- MDF and plywood, painted to order
- Fitting days
- Weekdays, and Saturdays by prior arrangement
- Get in touch
- Send us a message
- Last updated
- 27 October 2026
When you need someone else
We make and fit furniture, and we do not do electrics, plumbing, gas, plastering or structural work. Please bear these in mind too:
- Treating damp in the chimney breast or walls
- Plastering or repairing loose plaster in the alcoves
- Electrical work, such as new sockets or switches, which is for your electrician
If you are not sure what’s possible in your room, you can send us a few details through our contact form and we’ll give you a straight answer before you arrange a visit. How it works.
What it’s made from
- Birch plywood
- Panelled or flat doors
- Adjustable shelves
- Hand-painted finish
- Scribed side panels
- Moisture-resistant MDF
- Spray-painted finish
Common questions about alcove units
Can you fit furniture in a home close to Chelsfield station?
Yes, homes across Bromley and the rest of London are within the area we cover. You can drop us a line using the contact form to arrange a design visit.
Can you make alcove units for a home in Goddington?
Yes, we work across Bromley, Goddington included, and across the rest of London. You can tell us about the room on our contact form to arrange a design visit.
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.
Does someone need to be home during the fitting?
Someone needs to let us in. It also helps to have someone around at the end, so we can go over the finished furniture together.
Do you work on Saturdays?
Yes, we can arrange Saturdays. Let us know when you first get in touch, and we’ll see what we can do.
Should I send pictures?
Yes. Pictures help us understand the room before the design visit, along with rough measurements. Show anything the furniture has to work around, such as radiators or sockets.
Why bespoke in Goddington?
To be fair, a standalone bookcase or cabinet can go with you to your next home. Fitted alcove units stay with the house and are left behind when you go. Which suits you depends on your plans. Doors, windows and radiators rarely leave a gap that matches a standard width, so ready-made furniture often ends up in the wrong place. Built-in pieces are planned around those fixed points.
What goes inside matters as much as the outside: rails, shelves, drawers and dividers all add work. At the design visit, we work out what you need inside, then set it out in the quote.
Why work with us in Goddington
- Built in our workshop and fitted in your home
- Made for your room, not a standard size
- Work across the whole of London
- Scribed to uneven walls
Read how bespoke compares with ready-made and how to compare quotes.
From workshop to your room
On the morning of the fitting, the first job is covering the floors and protecting the way in from the front door. The sections made at our workshop come in next, one at a time. How long the fitting takes depends on how many alcoves there are and how tall the units go, and your quote sets out the fitting days. In a 1930s house with a converted loft, the stairs to the loft room are often steeper than the main flight, so pieces for a loft room are sized for the narrowest point. Elsewhere in the house, the route is typically more generous. Each section is assembled and fixed in the room.
- You contact us about the alcoves you want to fill.
- We come to measure and talk through cupboards, shelves, heights and doors. If one alcove needs a desk or a TV space, this is when we plan it.
- We put the design, materials and finish into a quote in writing, ready for you to check.
- The units are made at our workshop from moisture-resistant MDF and birch plywood.
- The units are fitted in your home, ready to fill. Any scribing to the walls is done on the day.
How to prepare
- Take down pictures, mirrors and shelves from the wall
- Keep pets out of the room and the hallway
- Move furniture and belongings away from the wall
Ask for a quote
Prices are quoted for your room, once we’ve measured and talked through the design. Because every room is different, the quote comes after the design visit, once the room is measured and the design talked through. To arrange a visit, message us from the contact page.
Advice
Alcove units in Goddington: local notes
About 59% of the homes in the area around Goddington went up between 1945 and 1972, and about 18% between 1919 and 1939, on the Valuation Office Agency’s council tax figures for 2025. It’s a good starting point, though every room is still measured, as two homes of the same age rarely match. Entries on the National Heritage List near the centre of Goddington include Goddington House (Grade II), under half a mile north. Where a home is listed, listed building consent can be needed for inside works that affect its character, like fixing into original panelling. It is worth speaking to the council’s conservation officer before the design is final. Parking controls in London are set borough by borough, so Bromley has its own. If your street in Goddington is in a controlled parking zone, a visitor’s permit, a paid parking bay or a bay suspension through the council may be needed. Let us know what the parking is like at the design visit.
If you live in a flat close to Chelsfield station, it helps to book the lift and tell the concierge before fitting day. For a family home near The Highway Primary School, a cupboard for board games and a shelf for reading books can go into the same design.
Goddington is about 1 mile north of Orpington, part of the London Borough of Bromley. Anywhere in Goddington, it works the same way: we visit and measure, send a quote in writing, make the furniture in our workshop and fit it. We list Goddington among 49 places we cover in Bromley.
We cover every part of the BR6 and BR5 postcode area for alcove units. Our area takes in homes on streets such as Eton Road, Stowe Road and Court Road, along with the roads around them, for alcove units and any of our other fitted furniture. Neighbouring places we cover for alcove units include Chelsfield (1 mile south-east), Orpington (1 mile north), Derry Downs (1 mile north), Maypole (1 mile south-east) and Bopeep (2 miles south-east). Across the rest of Bromley, our area takes in Bromley (5 miles north-west), Beckenham (7 miles north-west), St Mary Cray (2 miles north), Chislehurst (4 miles north-west), Penge (8 miles north-west) and Anerley (8 miles north-west).
Local landmarks in Goddington
The streets we cover here include those near St Olave's and St Saviour's Grammar School, Harris Academy Orpington and Five Bells Public House, among other places. The nearest railway station is Chelsfield station, about 0.7 miles south. Other landmarks nearby include London Borough of Bromley Museum (0.9 miles north) and Orpington Hospital (0.8 miles west).
Places near Goddington
Other services in Goddington
Practical tips
Fitted furniture is part of the room, so it is worth looking after. Here are a few tips worth knowing:
- Think about what you will store before we meet
- Consider whether the units should reach the ceiling
- Bring the sizes of anything that has to fit in the cupboards
- Plan any new sockets with your electrician before fitting
Fill the shelves gradually and spread heavy things evenly. Books weigh more than most people expect, and an even load keeps the shelves straight.
Keep heaters and very hot lamps from standing right against the paintwork, because constant heat is not kind to a painted finish.