Example photo by Pete Alexopoulos on Unsplash, not our project
Greenwich · London
Alcove Units in Woolwich
Alcove units in Woolwich: cupboards and shelves built into the alcoves beside a chimney breast. Each piece is designed at a visit to your home, made at our workshop and fitted by us.
- Standard units leaving gaps at the sides
- Clutter with nowhere to go
- Units that sit well with original features
Ask about alcove units in Woolwich
Made for the room, or bought in a box?
Shelves in some flat-pack furniture are thin and can bow under books. We size our shelves for their span and what they’ll carry. That said, if you are renting or moving soon, a good off-the-shelf unit may make more sense. Flats tend to have walls interrupted by doors, radiators and sockets, and standard widths rarely fit between them. Built-in pieces are sized for each stretch of wall.
Parking is part of the price picture in London. Much of London is covered by controlled parking zones, so we may need a visitor permit, a paid bay or a suspended bay near your home. Tell us about parking during the design visit, so it can be planned.
Why us?
- Every London borough and the City of London covered
- Scribed to uneven walls
- More than 300 projects completed
- Saturdays by arrangement
Read how bespoke compares with ready-made and what to look for in a quote.
Alcove units for homes in Woolwich
An alcove can also take a small desk, with shelves above and a drawer or cupboard below. It is a neat way to work from home without giving up a whole room. Desk height and depth are agreed with you, and leave a route for cables to reach the sockets. We make alcove units from moisture-resistant MDF and birch plywood, spray-painted or hand-painted, and the things people most often want solved are tired cupboards in the alcoves and furniture that doesn’t fit the alcove.
Getting long pieces into a flat often takes the most planning. Since most households around Woolwich live in purpose-built flats, the sections for alcove units are planned at the design visit, sized for the tightest point on the way in. The joins are placed where they will not show once the furniture is fitted.
After the design visit, we send you a written quote. It describes the design we discussed, the materials and the finish, so it is clear what’s included.
- Location
- Woolwich (SE18, E16, SE7)
- Area
- Greenwich
- Price
- Quoted for your room
- To begin
- Design visit, then a written quote
- Making
- In our workshop, then fitted in your home
- Made from
- MDF and birch plywood, painted
- Working days
- Weekdays, and Saturdays by arrangement
- Enquiries
- The contact form
- Updated
- 27 October 2026
Also near Woolwich
Other services in Woolwich
Woolwich homes and alcove units
About 31% of the homes in the area around Woolwich went up since 2000, and about 25% between 1973 and 1999, according to Valuation Office Agency council tax figures (2025). The age of a home tells us a lot about its walls, floors and ceilings, and so about how alcove units are fixed and fitted. Woolwich is partly covered by a conservation area, according to Historic England’s records. The controls in a conservation area are mostly about the outside of buildings, so furniture fitted inside a house does not normally need planning permission. Your council can advise if you’re unsure. Around a third of the homes in the streets around Woolwich (about 31%) were built since 2000, according to Valuation Office Agency council tax figures (2025). In homes built since 2000, living rooms are often open-plan with stud walls, so the fixings go into the studs, or heavier pieces stand on the floor.
Queen's House, about 2.9 miles west, 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. Living in a block of flats near Woolwich Dockyard station? Then it is useful to book the lift and tell the concierge before fitting day.
Woolwich is part of the Royal Borough of Greenwich, about 1 mile east of Plumstead. Woolwich is part of the area we cover, and the process is the same everywhere we work. Our Greenwich coverage includes Woolwich and the places around it.
We make alcove units across the SE18, E16 and SE7 postcode area. If your home is on a street such as Market Street, Woolwich High Street and Beresford Square Market Place, or close by, we can arrange a design visit for alcove units. If you’re just outside Woolwich, we also cover Plumstead (1 mile east), Charlton (1 mile west), New Charlton (1 mile west), Shooter's Hill (1 mile south) and Kidbrooke (2 miles south-west). Other parts of Greenwich we cover include Greenwich (3 miles west), Eltham (3 miles south), Well Hall (2 miles south), Maze Hill (3 miles west), Coldharbour (4 miles south) and New Eltham (4 miles south). Woolwich is one of the larger places we cover in Greenwich.
Landmarks near Woolwich
We fit furniture in homes around Oasis Academy Silvertown, Oasis Academy Silvertown and The Great Harry pub, among other places. Woolwich has its own railway station: Woolwich Dockyard station. Other landmarks nearby include British Hospital for Mothers and Babies (0.5 miles west) and Gallions Reach Shopping Park (1.6 miles north-east). Not far away are Gilbert's Pit.
The problems alcove units solve
A chimney breast without its fireplace can leave a wall that feels unfinished. Units on both sides frame the chimney breast and balance the room, whether or not the fireplace is used.
We are often asked to help with:
- Standard units leaving gaps at the sides
- Toys and paperwork with no proper home
- Tired cupboards in the alcoves
- A place for a small desk
Close to Woolwich Common? A room that looks out on trees deserves a design that leaves the window alone.
Before you choose who makes it
- How they deal with uneven walls and floors
- Which parts of the job need an electrician or a plumber
- Whether the route into your home has been checked
- How doors and drawers are fitted
How fitting works for alcove units
You won’t need to do much on the day. We need someone to let us in at the start, and the room should already be cleared, as agreed at the measuring visit. After that, it’s over to us: the floors are covered, the sections come in and the fitting begins. How long fitting takes depends on the size of the alcoves and what goes in them, and your quote sets out the fitting days. Some buildings have a concierge, a lift booking system or set working hours, so check them with the managing agent before fitting day. Floors in the flat and the common parts are protected while the furniture comes in.
- You let us know which room it is and roughly what you’d like in the alcoves.
- At the design visit, we measure both alcoves, check the walls and look at the skirting and picture rail.
- You receive a quote with the design, the materials and the paint finish. If anything needs changing, just tell us.
- The cupboards and shelves are then built in our workshop, each one sized to its own alcove.
- We fit the units, scribe them to the walls and set them level. The finish is sprayed in our workshop or hand-painted on site, as agreed.
Before we arrive
- Make sure pets are kept safely away
- Clear the walls of pictures and shelves
- Tell us about parking near your home
Getting a quote
The design visit is where every quote starts. We measure the room properly, check how the walls and floors run and discuss the design with you. Afterwards, we send a written quote. To book one, drop us a line using the contact form.
Advice
Flats, blocks and rented homes
If the property is let, we will need access agreed with the tenants, at times that suit them. A letting agent can arrange this on a landlord’s behalf, and the written quote can go to whoever needs it.
Some blocks ask for notice before trades arrive, often through a building manager or concierge. Lifts sometimes need to be booked, and the lift size helps decide how big each section can be. Mention it when you get in touch.
Common questions about alcove units
Will a conservation area stop me having alcove units fitted in Woolwich?
Normally not: conservation area rules mainly cover the outside of buildings, and fitted furniture inside a house doesn’t normally need planning permission. Listed buildings are different, as works inside that affect their character may need listed building consent from the council. The council’s planning or conservation team can tell you if in doubt.
Is parking a problem for fitting in Woolwich?
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.
What affects the price of alcove units?
Size, doors and drawers, what goes inside and the finish all affect it. The price comes in a quote in writing after the design visit.
What paint finish can I have on alcove units?
There are two options: a spray-painted finish done in our workshop, or a hand-painted finish done on site. Both are in a colour agreed with you. Spraying gives a smooth, even surface, and hand painting is easy to touch up.
Do you cover Woolwich?
Yes. We work across all 32 London boroughs and the City of London, and that includes Woolwich.
Do I need to be at home on fitting day?
We need someone to let us in. It’s good to have someone there at the end to look over the work with us.
Boards, parts and paint
Birch plywood
We often use birch plywood for drawer boxes too because it stands up to daily use. The edge can be painted or shown as a detail.
Moisture-resistant MDF
Moisture-resistant MDF is stable and takes paint well, so we use it for doors, panels and the faces you see. It is a sensible choice where an alcove sits against an external wall.