Barking and Dagenham · London
Under-stairs storage in Barking, Barking and Dagenham
Planning under-stairs storage for a home in Barking? We start with a design visit and a quote in writing.
- A tired under-stairs cupboard that stands out
- The low end of the space going to waste
- A staircase with untidy space beneath it
Under-stairs storage in Barking
About our under-stairs storage in Barking
No two staircases are quite the same. The underside slopes, the side of the stairs runs at its own angle and the floor below is rarely perfectly level. Each under-stairs cupboard we make follows those lines, so the fronts sit neatly against the stairs. It is the part of the job a boxed unit simply can’t manage. Typical reasons to get in touch are an under-stairs cupboard full of clutter and struggling to reach the gas or electricity meter; the furniture is made from birch plywood and moisture-resistant MDF with a spray-painted or hand-painted finish.
In a home built since 2000, there are often spaces the builder left plain, like a recess, a landing corner or an empty cupboard. Many homes around Barking date from 2000 onwards, so spaces like that are worth a second look. Drawers and shelves can make use of the full depth.
The written quote puts the design visit in writing: the layout and internal fittings, the materials and the finish. If something isn’t quite right, tell us before anything is made.
- Place
- Barking (IG11, RM9, RM8, E6)
- Area
- Barking and Dagenham
- Price
- Quoted for your room
- To begin
- We visit, measure, then quote
- Making
- In our workshop, then fitted in your home
- Boards and paint
- MDF and birch plywood, painted
- When we fit
- Weekdays, and Saturdays by arrangement
- Get in touch
- The contact form
- Updated
- 27 October 2026
Practical tips
Fitted furniture is part of the room, so it’s worth looking after. Here are a few tips worth knowing:
- Make room so the whole space can be measured
- Consider the colour of the hall, the stairs and the skirting
- Let us know about parking near your home
- Think about what you will keep in each drawer
Before we leave, we check every drawer and door with you. If there’s a meter or fuse board, we make sure its door opens fully and the meter is easy to see. You will know everything works as planned.
Closing drawers fully helps keep the runners and fronts in good order. A quick sort every so often stops drawers getting too heavy. Wipe up any spills, particularly near the floor, before they dry.
Questions from Barking
Can you fit furniture in a home close to Barking station?
Yes. We cover all of Barking and Dagenham and the rest of London. You can fill in our short enquiry form to arrange a design visit.
Can parking be tricky on fitting day in Barking?
It depends on the street, as many London boroughs run controlled parking zones. 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 during the design visit.
Can I send photos before the visit?
Yes. They give us a feel for the space before we visit, along with rough measurements. It is useful to show radiators, sockets and anything else on the wall.
What happens during the design visit?
We measure the space and discuss the design, materials and finish. We also check the walls and floors and note radiators, sockets and other things in the way, and the written quote comes afterwards.
How long does it take to fit under-stairs storage?
The time the fitting takes depends on how much storage you want under the stairs, and we confirm the fitting days in your quote. The storage is built in our workshop first, so the time in your home is spent fitting. We keep the hallway as clear as we can while we work.
Can you fit a small desk under the stairs?
Often, yes, where the space opens onto a room and there’s enough height at one end. We can build a desk with shelves and drawers to suit the space. Any socket or light there is for your electrician, and we plan around it.
What else we make in Barking
Making use of awkward spaces in Barking
In the area around Barking, the largest groups of homes date from the years since 2000 (about 39%) and between 1919 and 1939 (about 28%), in the VOA’s 2025 council tax stock figures. Each era brings its own kind of wall, ceiling height and floor, so it shapes the design from the first measurement. There are 5 entries on the National Heritage List within half a mile of the centre of Barking. You can check whether a particular building is listed on Historic England’s list. Newer homes are more common around Barking than across Barking and Dagenham: about 39% date from 2000 onwards, against about 20%, based on the Valuation Office Agency’s 2025 council tax data. That makes plasterboard stud walls and compact rooms more likely, which shapes the fixings and sizes.
If you live in a flat close to Barking station, the route in is measured along with the room itself, and the sections are sized to fit it. If your home is as old as some of the listed buildings nearby, like Eastbury Manor House, original features like shutters, panelling and fireplaces are worth designing around. For a listed home, fixing into original features can need listed building consent. For an older house near St Patrick's Church, under-stairs cupboards are scribed to walls and stair strings that are rarely straight.
Barking is within the London Borough of Barking and Dagenham. Homes in Barking are part of the area we cover for under-stairs storage. We cover places right across Barking and Dagenham, from the busiest high streets to quiet residential roads.
In IG11, RM9, RM8 and E6, the process is the same as anywhere else in London. Streets in the area include Eastbury Square, London Road and Church Road, and homes on each of them are within our area for under-stairs storage. Neighbouring places we cover for under-stairs storage include Loxford (1 mile north-west), Creekmouth (1 mile south), Wallend (1 mile west), East Ham (2 miles west) and Beckton (2 miles south-west). Elsewhere in Barking and Dagenham, we also cover Dagenham (3 miles east), Becontree (2 miles north-east), Becontree Heath (3 miles north-east), Chadwell Heath (4 miles north-east) and Dagenham Green (2 miles east).
Local landmarks in Barking
Our area takes in the homes around The Barking Dog pub and Greatfields School and the streets around them. Barking’s nearest station is Barking station, about 0.8 miles north-west. A little further out are East End Women's Museum (0.9 miles west) and Barking Community Hospital (under half a mile north). Open spaces near Barking include Ripple Nature Reserve.
How we price under-stairs storage
When we put a quote together, we consider:
- Access to the room, like stairs, lifts and narrow halls
- The overall size of the piece
- Spray painting or hand painting
- Parking near your home
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. Tell us about parking at the design visit.
Before the design visit
There is no need for exact sizes or plans. Just send what you can:
- Anything fixed to the wall that the furniture needs to work around
- Rough measurements: width, height and depth
- How you want to use the space
- Photos of the whole wall or room, including the floor and ceiling
A quote begins with a few details from you: which room it is, rough measurements and a couple of pictures if you can take them. When you are ready, fill in our short enquiry form. After that, we arrange a visit to measure and go through the design, then send a written quote.
Flats, leases and landlords
If you live in a flat, getting the furniture in is planned from the start. At the design visit, we measure the stairs, the landings, any lift and the doors, so the furniture can be made in sections that fit through.
For a rented home, access for the design visit and fitting day has to be agreed with the tenants. An agent can arrange access for you, and the written quote can go to whoever needs it.
How it is made
Spray-painted finish
A spray-painted finish is smooth and even, almost like a factory finish. We spray in the workshop, so the finish is complete before fitting. The colour is agreed with you.
Plinths and scribe strips
The floor under a staircase is rarely perfectly level. A plinth or adjustable feet let us set the storage level, so everything opens and closes as it should.
What happens on fitting day
However carefully a piece is made in the workshop, it still has to meet the room, and that happens on fitting day. Few walls in older London homes are truly flat or square, so we scribe the edges by hand to follow the wall. How long the fitting itself takes depends on the size of the space and the design, and your quote sets out the fitting days. On the day, floors are covered first and the sections brought in. Each piece is levelled and fixed to suit plasterboard or block. Any hand painting can be finished on site.
- You let us know about the space under the stairs.
- At the design visit we measure and plan how you will use the space.
- A quote in writing follows.
- The storage is made in our workshop from moisture-resistant MDF and birch plywood.
- The storage is fitted and finished, and we check each pull-out with you before we leave.
- Treat the fresh paintwork gently while it cures; a hand-painted finish is easy to touch up later.
Before we arrive
- Clear the hallway and stairs so the sections can come through
- Let us know if your street is in a controlled parking zone
- Keep pets in another room while we work
Getting a quote
To make a start, send us a few details through our contact form and tell us a little about the room and roughly what you’d like. From there, we arrange a design visit to measure up and talk through your ideas, and send you a quote in writing afterwards.