Example photo by Pete Alexopoulos on Unsplash, not our project
Lambeth · London
Alcove units in Kennington, Lambeth
Thinking about alcove units in Kennington? We start with a design visit and a quote in writing, before anything is made.
- Bare alcoves beside the fireplace
- Somewhere to keep books and records
- Walls too uneven for standard furniture
Ask about alcove units in Kennington
About our alcove units in Kennington
Period rooms often have skirting boards, picture rails and cornices. Units can be cut around them, stop just below them or run neatly up to them, depending on the look you want. A plinth can be set to line up with the skirting so the units feel part of the room. We agree these details at the measuring visit. Typical reasons to get in touch are somewhere to keep books and records and alcoves that aren’t square; the furniture is made from birch plywood and moisture-resistant MDF with a spray-painted or hand-painted finish.
In a mansion block flat, ceilings are often tall and the walls are rarely straight, while a flat in a newer block is more likely to have plasterboard partitions. Around Kennington, most households live in purpose-built flats of one kind or another, so we check what each wall is made of before planning alcove units. Tall pieces are fixed back securely, whichever wall it is.
The written quote is your record of the job. It describes the alcove unit we’ve designed for the room, its materials and its finish, and the workshop works from it.
- Where
- Kennington (SW8, SW1P, SE11)
- Borough
- Lambeth
- Cost
- Quoted for your room
- How it starts
- We visit, measure, then quote
- Made
- In our workshop, then fitted in your home
- Materials and finish
- MDF and birch plywood, painted
- Fitting days
- Weekdays, and Saturdays by arrangement
- Contact
- Send us a message
- Last updated
- 27 October 2026
Boards, parts and paint
Plinths and scribe strips
Scribing means trimming the edges on site so they follow the wall. It is how a straight unit meets a wall that isn’t straight.
Spray-painted finish
A spray-painted finish is applied in our workshop, for a smooth and even finish. It suits a crisp, modern look as well as a classic one.
Is bespoke worth it?
Bought units stop at standard heights, which normally leaves a gap above. A bespoke unit can run up to the ceiling or finish just under the picture rail, whichever looks right in your room. Flats tend to have walls interrupted by doors, radiators and sockets, so off-the-shelf widths rarely fill the gaps. Fitted furniture is made for the spaces that are left.
Tricky rooms take more time: uneven walls, sloping floors and angled ceilings all add scribing and cutting on site. The quote allows for it.
Why choose us
- We visit, measure and go through the design before we quote
- Made in our workshop, then fitted in your home
- Saturdays by arrangement
- We work across all London boroughs
Also near Kennington
Other services in Kennington
Alcove units in Kennington: local notes
Homes built since 2000 make up about 32% of the housing in the streets around Kennington, with about 26% built before 1919, according to Valuation Office Agency council tax figures (2025). Knowing roughly when a home was built helps, because walls and fixings change from one era to the next. The National Heritage List has 131 entries within half a mile of the centre of Kennington. Original fireplaces, shutters and panelling are worth keeping where they survive, and alcove units can be designed to work around them. Newer homes are more common around Kennington than across Lambeth: about 32% date from 2000 onwards, against about 17%, on the Valuation Office Agency’s council tax figures for 2025. Newer homes often have stud walls and compact rooms, so fixings and sizes are planned with that in mind.
If your home is as old as some of the listed buildings nearby, such as Church of St Mark, original features like shutters, panelling and fireplaces are worth designing around. For a listed home, fixing into original features can need listed building consent. The wider area includes historic houses like Buckingham Palace, about 1.7 miles north-west. If your own home is a period one, the alcoves beside a chimney breast are the natural place for alcove units. Close to Vauxhall Park? Shelving that stops short of the window keeps the view of the green.
Kennington is about 1 mile south of Stockwell, part of the London Borough of Lambeth. Anywhere in Kennington, it works the same way: we visit and measure, send a quote in writing, make the furniture in our workshop and fit it. Across Lambeth, we cover Kennington, along with the rest of the borough.
We cover every part of the SW8, SW1P and SE11 postcode area for alcove units. You will find streets here such as Kay Road, Lett Road and Rita Road, and we cover homes on all of them for alcove units. The A203 and A3204 runs close to Kennington; on busy main roads, unloading alcove units takes a little planning. Close by, we also work in Oval (1 mile north), South Lambeth (1 mile south-west), Little Portugal (1 mile south), North Brixton (1 mile south-east) and Vauxhall (1 mile north). Other parts of Lambeth we cover include Streatham (4 miles south), West Norwood (4 miles south), South Bank (2 miles north), Brixton (2 miles south), Gipsy Hill (4 miles south) and Streatham Hill (3 miles south). Kennington is among the bigger places we cover in Lambeth.
Near you in Kennington
In Kennington, that includes homes near Archbishop Tenison's Church of England School, Crown and Thistle pub and St Peter's School and the streets around them. Kennington has its own railway station: Vauxhall station. A little further out are The Gordon Hospital (1 mile north-west) and Type Museum (0.5 miles south). For a walk, there’s Battersea Park Lake.
Where other trades come in
Before you plan the job, it is useful to know what we do not do:
- Redecorating, which is for your decorator
- Taking out a chimney breast or opening up a fireplace
- New sockets or wiring (your electrician handles those)
If you are not sure what’s possible in your room, you can fill in our short enquiry form and we’ll give you a straight answer. Our process from visit to fitting.
Materials and parts
- Panelled or flat doors
- Hand-painted finish
- Spray-painted finish
- Adjustable shelves
- Moisture-resistant MDF
- Scribed side panels
- Birch plywood
What happens on fitting day
In older rooms, the furniture typically has to meet skirting, picture rails, cornice or coving. On fitting day, we cut and scribe the furniture around these details, so it looks as though it was always there. How long the fitting takes depends on the size of the alcoves and what goes in them, and we confirm the fitting days in your quote. Parking near blocks of flats can be limited, and loading may need planning, so details of bays, permits or a loading area help. Once inside, the sections are joined and fixed with fixings that suit the wall. Saturdays can be arranged.
- You get in touch about alcove units and the room they’re for.
- At the design visit we measure up, agree the layout and talk about colour and finish. You can choose a spray-painted finish from our workshop or a hand-painted one done in your home.
- The written quote then sets out the design, the materials and the finish you’ve picked.
- The units are built in our workshop from moisture-resistant MDF and birch plywood.
- The units are fitted and scribed to the alcoves.
- New paintwork takes a while to cure fully, so treat the surfaces gently at first.
Before we arrive
- Have your electrician move any sockets or switches beforehand
- Clear the hallway and stairs so the sections can come through
- Keep pets in another room while we work
Getting a quote
We quote each job for the room it’s going into, after the design visit. Each room is different, so we quote after seeing it. To arrange a visit, get in touch through our contact form.
Related advice
Common questions about alcove units
Can parking be tricky on fitting day in Kennington?
It can be, as controlled parking zones cover much of inner London. Depending on the street, a visitor permit, a paid bay or a bay suspension through the council may be needed, and suspensions often need notice. Let us know what parking is near you at the design visit.
Is Kennington in the area you cover for alcove units?
Yes. We cover all of Lambeth and the rest of London, and Kennington is part of that. The first step is a design visit, where we measure and go through the design, and then we send a quote.
Do alcove units affect the chimney’s ventilation?
We plan alcove units so any chimney vent stays clear. Even a blocked chimney needs some ventilation to help keep damp away and we design around it.
Who moves the sockets behind the alcove units?
Electrical work is not something we do. If you want sockets moved or added, your electrician should do that before we fit, and some electrical work in homes is covered by Part P of the Building Regulations. We plan the units around the sockets, with cut-outs where needed.
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, then send a quote in writing.
Do you work on Saturdays?
Yes, Saturdays are possible by prior arrangement. Let us know when you first get in touch, and we’ll see what we can do.
Caring for painted furniture
Because fitted furniture stays put, a little upkeep goes a long way. Here are a few tips worth knowing:
- Mention parking and access when we visit
- Look for a chimney vent that needs to stay clear
- Think about how the units meet the picture rail and cornice
- Think about what you’ll store before we meet
Once the cupboards are filled and in daily use, a door may settle slightly. Hinges can usually be adjusted to bring a door back in line.
Watch for damp marks on the chimney breast or the walls near the units. Damp needs its cause fixing by the right trade, and it is easier to deal with before it spreads.