Barnet · London
Under-stairs storage in Childs Hill, Barnet
Thinking about under-stairs storage in Childs Hill? It starts with a design visit to measure and talk through ideas, then a quote in writing, before anything is made.
- Storage that doesn’t match the hallway
- A staircase with untidy space beneath it
- Struggling to reach the gas or electricity meter
Ask about under-stairs storage in Childs Hill
Flats, leases and landlords
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.
Landlords furnishing a let use fitted furniture too. It is made from the same moisture-resistant MDF and birch plywood as any of our work.
Under-stairs storage for homes in Childs Hill
In many terraced houses, the gas meter, electricity meter or fuse board sits under the stairs. These must stay easy to reach for meter readers and engineers. We plan the storage around them, normally with a door that leaves them in clear reach, so the space works hard without hiding anything that matters. At the design visit in Childs Hill, we note what’s there and design around it. We make under-stairs cupboards from moisture-resistant MDF and birch plywood, finished by spray or by hand, and the things people most often want solved are a meter or fuse board buried behind clutter and a vacuum cleaner that has nowhere to go.
In streets where many homes were built before 1919, as they were around Childs Hill, under-stairs cupboards in older terraces often house the meters or the fuse board. Those have to stay reachable, so any storage is designed around them. Bays and sash windows in period houses are natural spots for a window seat.
We write quotes in plain English. You will see what will be made, the boards used and the finish, taken from what we agreed at the visit.
- Where
- Childs Hill (NW2, NW3, NW11)
- Area
- Barnet
- Price
- Quoted for your room
- To begin
- A design visit: we measure and talk it through
- Making
- Workshop-made, then fitted
- Made from
- Painted MDF and birch ply
- Fitting days
- Weekdays, and Saturdays by prior arrangement
- Contact
- Our contact form
- Page updated
- 27 October 2026
How it’s made
Plinths and scribe strips
In older houses, walls and floors are seldom straight. We use scribe strips at the walls and a plinth at the floor to take up the difference. That keeps the lines neat all round.
Birch plywood
Drawers under the stairs often carry heavy things, from shoes to the vacuum cleaner. That is why we make drawer boxes from birch plywood, which is strong and holds screws firmly. Long shelves benefit from it too.
Why people ask for under-stairs storage in Childs Hill
People who have just moved in, or have just finished a hallway, often want the space under the stairs to match. New storage, painted in a colour chosen for the hall, can tie it together. If decorating is planned, it is worth mentioning during the design visit so the work can be timed sensibly.
If any of these sound familiar, it’s worth getting in touch:
- Wanting a quiet corner for paperwork
- A dark, wasted space under the stairs
- Storage that doesn’t match the hallway
- A fuse board that’s hard to get to
If you live in a period home close to All Saints, under-stairs cupboards are scribed to walls and stair strings that are rarely straight.
Before you hire any carpenter
- Whether the finish is set out in the quote
- Are the boards named, like MDF or plywood?
- Have they thought about parking near you?
- Who does any electrics, plumbing or gas work
Why bespoke in Childs Hill?
Walls and floors in older homes are seldom straight or level. Standard units show the gaps, and filler strips can only hide so much. We scribe each under-stairs cupboard to follow the walls and the stairs, and set it level on a plinth or adjustable feet. Standard furniture is drawn for modern rooms, so its proportions can look odd in a tall period room, while fitted furniture can follow the room’s own lines, with panels and details to suit the house.
Your quote is written for your room once we’ve visited and measured. The price depends mainly on the size of the piece, how many doors and drawers it has and what goes inside.
Why choose Bespoke Carpentry in Childs Hill
- Built around your room
- Scribed to uneven walls
- Built from moisture-resistant MDF and birch plywood
- A spray or hand-painted finish
Take a look at how bespoke compares with ready-made and what to look for in a quote.
Under-stairs storage in Childs Hill: local notes
In the streets around Childs Hill, the largest groups of homes date from before 1919 (about 45%) and between 1919 and 1939 (about 25%), in the VOA’s 2025 council tax stock figures. The age of a home tells us a lot about its walls, floors and ceilings, and so about how under-stairs cupboards are fixed and fitted. Near the centre of Childs Hill, Historic England’s list includes Annesley Lodge (Grade II*), under half a mile south, and Church of St Luke (Grade II*), under half a mile south. Where a home is listed, listed building consent can be needed for inside works that affect its character, like fixing into original panelling. Check with the council’s conservation officer first. Each London borough runs its own parking controls, and Barnet is no exception. Where a street in Childs Hill is controlled, a van may need a visitor permit, a paid bay or a bay suspension from the council. Let us know about parking at the design visit.
Close to Childs Hill Park? Living near green space often means muddy boots, bikes and outdoor kit, and under-stairs cupboards can give those things a place. Heath House, about 0.7 miles east, is one of the historic houses in the wider area. If your own home is a period one, the cupboard door under a period staircase can be kept or replaced to match the new storage.
Childs Hill is about 3 miles north of Finchley, part of the London Borough of Barnet. We work across all London boroughs and the City of London, and Childs Hill is part of that. Childs Hill is one of the places in Barnet where we make under-stairs storage.
Design visits and fitting in NW2, NW3 and NW11 work the same way as everywhere else we cover. If your home is on a street such as Nant Road, Ridge Road and Garth Road, or close by, we can visit to measure up for under-stairs storage. Nearby, we also make under-stairs storage in Fortune Green (1 mile south), West Hampstead (1 mile south-east), Golders Green (1 mile north), North End (1 mile north-east) and Vale of Health (1 mile east). Across the rest of Barnet, our area takes in Finchley (3 miles north), Barnet (6 miles north), Burnt Oak (4 miles north-west), East Finchley (2 miles north-east), Hendon (2 miles north-west) and Whetstone (4 miles north).
Local landmarks in Childs Hill
In Childs Hill, that includes homes near The Old Bull and Bush pub, St Vedasts School For Boys and Hampstead School and the streets around them. The nearest railway station is Cricklewood station, roughly 0.7 miles south-west of the centre. Other landmarks nearby include Kenwood House (1.4 miles north-east) and New End Hospital (0.9 miles east). Not far away are Westbere Copse.
Places near Childs Hill
More for homes in Childs Hill
FAQs: under-stairs storage in Childs Hill
Can parking be tricky on fitting day in Childs Hill?
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 measuring visit.
Do you cover homes near Cricklewood station?
Yes, homes across Barnet and the rest of London are within the area we cover. To get started, you can tell us about the room on our contact form with some details about the room, and tell us about parking and access at the same time.
Can you match the storage to my hallway?
Yes. We paint the storage in the colour you choose, by spray or by hand. You can match it to the walls, the banisters or the skirting, so it looks like part of the house.
Does fitted furniture need planning permission?
Not normally. Conservation areas mostly control changes to the outside, and fitted furniture inside a house doesn’t normally need planning permission. Listed buildings are different: check with the council’s conservation officer first.
Do I need to be at home on fitting day?
We need someone to let us in. It also helps to have someone around at the end, so we can go over the finished furniture together.
What do you do at the measuring visit?
We measure the room, check how level the walls and floors are and discuss the design with you. Access and parking are worth talking about too.
Fitting day, step by step
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, closing the gaps a standard unit would leave. How long the fitting itself takes depends on the shape of the space and the number of drawers and doors, and the fitting days are agreed in your quote. Hallways in period houses are often narrow, and the stairs turn sharply, so under-stairs cupboards are made in sections sized to get through. Floors, stairs and doorways are covered before anything is carried through.
- It starts when you contact us about the space under your stairs.
- We visit to measure and talk about how you will use the space, and check where the meters and fuse board sit.
- Your quote sets out the design, the materials and the finish. Take your time to look through it.
- We make the drawers, doors and carcasses in our workshop. The materials are moisture-resistant MDF and birch plywood.
- We fit it in your home and leave it ready to use, with the finish sprayed beforehand or painted by hand on site.
Preparing the room
- Make sure pets are kept safely away
- Let us know about any meters, fuse boards or boilers in the area
- Clear the hallway and stairs so the sections can come through
Arranging a design visit
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 quote in writing. To book one, use our contact form.