Example photo by Pete Alexopoulos on Unsplash, not our project
Croydon · London
Monks Orchard Alcove Units
We make alcove units in moisture-resistant MDF and birch plywood for homes in Monks Orchard. Each piece is finished by spray or by hand, in the colour you choose.
- A desk that tucks into an alcove
- Units that sit well with original features
- Clutter with nowhere to go
Alcove units designed for your room
How fitting works for alcove units
Period rooms often have skirting boards, picture rails, cornices or coving for the furniture to meet. On fitting day, we cut and scribe the furniture around these details. How long the fitting takes depends on how many alcoves there are and how tall the units go, and we confirm the fitting days in your quote. If you have a driveway, it can make unloading simpler, so let us know during the design visit. Otherwise, details of permits or nearby bays help. Doorways, stairs and floors are covered on the way in.
- You contact us about the alcoves you want to fill.
- A design visit follows, where we measure up and agree the layout with you. 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 written quote, ready for you to check.
- We build the units in our workshop, using moisture-resistant MDF and birch plywood. A spray-painted finish is applied there too, if that’s what you chose.
- We bring them to your home and fit them in place.
Before fitting day
- Clear the walls of pictures and shelves
- Keep pets in another room while we work
- Clear the hallway and stairs so the sections can come through
Ask for a quote
Prices are quoted for your room, once we’ve measured and talked through the design. Each room is different, so we quote after seeing it. For a quote, send us a few details through our contact form.
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Alcove units in Monks Orchard
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, whichever suits the room. The plinth height can match the skirting. These details are settled when we visit. Typical reasons to get in touch are shop-bought shelving that doesn’t fill the recess and units that sit well with original features, and the answer is built in our workshop from moisture-resistant MDF and birch plywood, finished by spray or by hand.
Many houses from between the wars, and many semis, have been extended or opened up inside, which matters around Monks Orchard, where homes like these are a big part of the housing. A long through room gives alcove units a whole wall to work with, or mark out the sitting end from the dining end. An extension’s plasterboard walls need different fixings from the original brick or block.
A written quote follows the design visit. It describes the design we discussed, the materials and the finish, so you know exactly what you are getting.
- Place
- Monks Orchard (CR0, SE25, CR9)
- Borough
- Croydon
- Price
- Quoted for your room
- How it starts
- We visit, measure, then quote
- Making
- In our workshop, then fitted in your home
- Materials and finish
- MDF and plywood, painted to order
- Working days
- Monday to Friday; Saturdays by arrangement
- Contact
- The contact form
- Last updated
- 27 October 2026
Nearby places to Monks Orchard
Other services in Monks Orchard
Bespoke alcove units or ready-made?
Bespoke furniture is not instant: it needs a design visit, a quote and time in the workshop. In return, the unit is planned for your alcove alone. In an extended or opened-up house, old and new walls often meet slightly out of line, which shows up against standard furniture. Fitted pieces are scribed to both.
What goes inside matters as much as the outside: drawers take more making than shelves, and each rail, divider or pull-out adds to the work. At the design visit, we work out what you need inside.
Why us?
- Every quote follows a design visit
- Made for your room, not a standard size
- Built in our workshop and fitted in your home
- More than 300 projects completed
Take a look at how bespoke compares with ready-made or how to compare quotes.
Is it time for alcove units?
Where a fireplace has been blocked up or removed, the chimney breast can look bare. A pair of alcove units frames it and gives the wall a sense of order.
Some of the things we’re asked to solve are these:
- Toys and paperwork with no proper home
- Somewhere to keep books and records
- Walls too uneven for standard furniture
- Old alcove cupboards that have seen better days
For a family home near Oasis Academy Shirley Park, a cupboard for board games and a shelf for reading books can go into the same design.
What to check before you book
- How the doors are hung and adjusted
- Real projects you can actually look at
- Whether the route into your home has been checked
- Will other trades be needed, and who arranges them?
Your questions about alcove units in Monks Orchard
I live near Elmers End station. Is that in your area?
Yes. We cover all of Croydon and the rest of London. You can get in touch through our contact form to arrange a design visit.
Is Monks Orchard in the area you cover for alcove units?
Yes. We cover all of Croydon and the rest of London, and Monks Orchard 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.
Is an outside wall a problem for fitted furniture?
It can be done with some care: leaving ventilation behind and inside helps stop condensation. We do not treat damp, so any damp should be sorted before fitting day.
Do you work on Saturdays?
Yes, by prior arrangement. Tell us when you contact us if a Saturday suits you best.
Can an alcove unit include a desk?
Yes. Many people use one alcove for a desk and the other for cupboards, or matching desks in both. We’ll plan the desk around how you work.
Do pictures help?
Yes. Pictures help us understand the room before the design visit. It helps to show radiators, sockets and anything else on the wall.
Alcove units for homes in Monks Orchard
Homes built between 1919 and 1939 make up about 42% of the housing in the neighbourhood around Monks Orchard, with about 18% built before 1919, on the Valuation Office Agency’s council tax figures for 2025. Knowing roughly when a home was built helps, because walls and fixings change from one era to the next. More than a third of the homes in the area around Monks Orchard (about 42%) date from between 1919 and 1939, based on the Valuation Office Agency’s 2025 council tax data. Houses from the 1920s and 1930s often have a bay window and a chimney breast in the front room, which shape where alcove units go. About 51% of households in the area around Monks Orchard live in detached or semi-detached houses, according to Census 2021. In a semi or detached house, a driveway, where there is one, can make unloading easier.
If your home is one of the older houses near St George The Martyr Church, walls that bow and floors that slope are why alcove units are scribed to fit rather than pushed into place. Addington Palace, about 1.8 miles south, is one of the historic houses in the wider area. If your own home is a period one, picture rails and cornices give alcove units a line to finish at.
Monks Orchard is about 3 miles north-west of Thornton Heath, part of the London Borough of Croydon. Wherever you are in Monks Orchard, it works the same way: a design visit, a quote in writing, furniture built in our workshop and fitting in your home. We list Monks Orchard among 32 places we cover in Croydon.
Design visits and fitting in CR0, SE25 and CR9 work the same way as everywhere else we cover. If your home is on a street such as Long Lane, Poppy Lane and Homer Road, or close by, we can arrange a design visit for alcove units. Nearby, we also make alcove units in Shirley (1 mile south), Shirley Oaks (1 mile west), Addiscombe (1 mile west), Ashburton (1 mile north-west) and Woodside (1 mile north-west). We also make alcove units in nearby places like Thornton Heath (3 miles north-west), Croydon (2 miles south-west), Coulsdon (6 miles south-west), Purley (4 miles south-west), Broad Green (2 miles west) and Upper Norwood (3 miles north-west).
Landmarks near Monks Orchard
The streets we cover here include those near Orchard Way Primary School and The Cricketers pub and the streets around them. The closest station to Monks Orchard is Elmers End station, roughly 1.2 miles north. A little further out are National Psychosis Unit (1 mile east) and St George's Walk (2 miles west).
How we price alcove units
Several things affect the price:
- Whether you choose a spray or hand-painted finish
- How many doors and drawers there are
- Walls and floors that are out of level or out of square
- Parking near your home
Access to the room makes a difference too. Narrow halls, tight stairs or a small lift may mean the furniture is made in more sections. Because every job is different, the cost is set out in a written quote after the visit.
What to send when you contact us
When you contact us, these help most:
- Rough measurements, even if they’re only to the nearest few centimetres
- Your postcode and the borough
- Whether it’s a house or a flat, and if there are stairs or a lift
- What you’d like to store or use the space for
To get a quote for alcove units in Monks Orchard, message us from the contact page. Let us know the room and the rough idea, with sizes if you have them. We’ll arrange a design visit, then send a written quote.
Practical tips
Because fitted furniture stays put, a little upkeep goes a long way. A few pointers help:
- Have any damp looked at before the units are made
- Clear the alcoves before the design visit if you can
- Book your electrician first if sockets need moving
- Let us know about stairs, parking and access early
A soft, slightly damp cloth is all painted units usually need. Avoid abrasive pads and strong cleaning sprays, as they can mark the finish. Wipe it dry when you’ve finished.
Put coasters or mats under anything that holds water, since standing water can mark painted shelves. Wipe up spills right away.