Example photo by Pete Alexopoulos on Unsplash, not our project
Croydon · London
Alcove units in Shirley Oaks, Croydon
Few London rooms are perfectly square, and we scribe the furniture to follow the walls. We make alcove units for homes in Shirley Oaks, each designed at a visit to your home.
- Worn or badly fitted alcove units
- Space for a growing book collection
- Shop-bought shelving that doesn’t fill the recess
Alcove units for your home in Shirley Oaks
Alcove units in Shirley Oaks
Some alcoves suit a full-height unit, with doors from floor to ceiling. In bedrooms, this often becomes a compact wardrobe or a place for bedding. At the design visit we ask what you plan to keep there, and set out the shelves and rails around it. We make alcove units from MDF made to resist moisture and birch plywood, then spray-painted or hand-painted, and the usual reasons to get in touch are a desk that tucks into an alcove and furniture that doesn’t fit the alcove.
In an area like Shirley Oaks, where interwar homes or semis make up much of the housing, many homes have had the front and back rooms knocked together. The result is often a long room with a chimney breast, a good spot for alcove units. At the design visit we plan any cable routes and ventilation the room needs.
Where other trades are needed, for instance an electrician to move a socket, we point that out, so it can be arranged before fitting day. Our quote covers the carpentry: the design, the materials and the finish.
- Location
- Shirley Oaks (CR0, SE25, CR9)
- Borough
- Croydon
- Prices
- Quoted for your room
- How it starts
- Design visit, then a written quote
- Making
- Made in our workshop and fitted on site
- Materials and finish
- MDF and birch plywood, painted
- Working days
- Weekdays; Saturdays on request
- Contact
- Send us a message
- Last updated
- 27 October 2026
Built-in living-room furniture in Shirley Oaks
About 42% of the homes in the area around Shirley Oaks went up between 1919 and 1939, and about 18% before 1919, going by the Valuation Office Agency’s 2025 council tax figures. It’s a good starting point, though every room is still measured, as two homes of the same age rarely match. Near the centre of Shirley Oaks, Historic England’s list includes Church of St Mildred (Grade II), about 0.6 miles west. Works inside a listed home that affect its character, for example removing original joinery or fixing into it, can require listed building consent from the council. An early word with the council’s conservation officer is the best first step. More than a third of the homes in the area around Shirley Oaks (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.
Addington Palace, about 1.8 miles south-east, 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. For families living near Oasis Academy Shirley Park, alcove units can be planned with low cupboards for toys and higher shelves for everything else. Close to Ashburton Park? Shelving that stops short of the window keeps the view of the green.
Shirley Oaks is about 3 miles north-west of Thornton Heath, within the London Borough of Croydon. Design visits and fitting in Shirley Oaks can be on a Saturday, by arrangement. Across Croydon, we cover Shirley Oaks.
Design visits and fitting in CR0, SE25 and CR9 work the same way as everywhere else we cover. Whether you live on a street such as Poppy Lane, Baring Road and Craven Road or on one nearby, we can arrange a design visit for alcove units. The A232 run close to Shirley Oaks, so if your home is on a main road, mention it when you get in touch. Other places close to Shirley Oaks include Shirley (1 mile east), Monks Orchard (1 mile east), Addiscombe (1 mile west), Ashburton (1 mile north-west) and Woodside (1 mile north-west). Across the rest of Croydon, our area takes in 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).
Near you in Shirley Oaks
Our area takes in the homes around The Cricketers pub and St. John's Church of England Primary School, among other places. The nearest railway station is Elmers End station, about 1.2 miles north of the centre. Well-known places in the area include National Psychosis Unit (1.1 miles east) and St George's Walk (1.9 miles west).
From workshop to your room
With the carcasses fixed and level, we hang any doors and fit any drawers or lids. We adjust each one so the gaps line up and it closes cleanly. The time the fitting takes depends on how many alcoves there are and how tall the units go, and your quote sets out the fitting days. On fitting day, the sections are carried in, assembled, scribed to the wall and levelled. Spray-painted pieces come finished from the workshop, while hand painting can happen on site. Saturday fitting is possible by prior arrangement.
- You send us some details about the alcoves and what you’d like in them.
- At the design visit, we measure each alcove and go through the layout with you, checking how far the walls are out of square.
- You receive a quote in writing setting out the units, materials and finish, so you can look it over in your own time.
- Each unit is built in our workshop to the measurements we took, using moisture-resistant MDF and birch plywood.
- We fit them in your home, scribing them to the walls, so they sit tight to the chimney breast.
How to prepare
- Let us know if your street is in a controlled parking zone
- Book any lift and let the concierge or building manager know
- Empty the space we will be working in
Arranging a design visit
We quote once we have seen the room. At the visit, we measure, look at the walls and floors and discuss the design with you, then send a quote in writing. Your quote is written for your room once we’ve visited and measured. To arrange a visit, tell us about the room on our contact form.
Related advice
Is bespoke worth it?
Off-the-shelf units can work in an alcove, and they typically cost less to buy. The catch is the fit: standard widths rarely match the recess, and uneven walls make every gap obvious. A bespoke alcove unit is made to your measurements and scribed to the plaster. Ready-made furniture rarely suits a bay, a box room or a bulkhead over the stairs, and interwar homes often have all three. Fitted furniture is made around them.
Because every job is different, the cost is set out in a written quote after the visit. Size, the number of doors and drawers and the internal fittings make the biggest difference to the price.
What you get with us
- Finished by spray or by hand
- Scribed to uneven walls
- Over 300 projects completed
- Made for your room, not a standard size
See how bespoke compares with ready-made and how to compare quotes.
Flats, blocks and rented homes
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 the furniture can be made in sections that fit through.
If your flat is leasehold, check your lease before fixing furniture to the walls. A lease can require consent from the building owner for alterations. We can’t advise on your lease.
Caring for painted furniture
People planning alcove units often ask about these. They help before and after fitting:
- Consider whether the units should reach the ceiling
- Note the sizes of large things you want to store
- Clear the alcoves before the design visit if you can
- Deal with any damp on the chimney breast first
A soft, slightly damp cloth is all painted units usually need. Avoid abrasive pads and strong cleaning sprays, which can dull or mark the paint. Dry the surface afterwards.
Avoid placing a heater hard up against the units, as strong heat can mark paint over time.
Materials and finishes
Birch plywood
Birch plywood helps shelves stay straight under books across a broad recess. We size the shelf for the span and the load.
Shelves
Alcove shelves can be fixed or adjustable. Fixed shelves add stiffness to the unit, while adjustable ones let you change heights later.
Questions from Shirley Oaks
Do you make alcove units for homes in Shirley Oaks?
Yes. Shirley Oaks is one of the places we work, along with the rest of Croydon and London. To get started, you can message us from the contact page with a few details.
Can parking be tricky on fitting day in Shirley Oaks?
It can be, depending on whether your street is in a controlled parking zone. A van may need a visitor permit, a pay-and-display bay or a suspended bay, which the council arranges, often with notice. Let us know what parking is near you at the design visit, and we’ll plan around it.
Do I need permission in a conservation area?
Not normally. Conservation areas mostly control changes to the outside, and fitted furniture inside a house doesn’t normally need planning permission. In a listed building, check with the council’s conservation officer before any work.
What affects the price of alcove units?
Each room is quoted on its own: the size, what goes inside, the finish and how square the room is all count. You’ll get a quote in writing once we have measured up.
Can you fit furniture on an external wall?
External walls can be colder and damper than internal ones, so we allow for ventilation behind and inside the furniture to avoid condensation. If there is damp, it should be sorted before anything is fitted.
How long does it take to fit alcove units?
The fitting depends on the size and number of units, and the fitting days are set out in your quote. We’ll explain what to expect before we arrive.