Westminster · London
Under-Stairs Storage in Maida Vale
Pull-out drawers, cupboards and coat storage under the stairs, designed for your room in Maida Vale. After a design visit and a written quote, it’s built in our workshop and fitted in your home.
- A vacuum cleaner that has nowhere to go
- Space under the stairs that is hard to use
- Wanting a quiet corner for paperwork
Under-stairs storage in Maida Vale
Practical tips
These points come up often when people plan under-stairs storage. They help before and after fitting:
- Make room so the whole space can be measured
- Let us know about parking at the measuring visit
- Think about what you will keep in each drawer
- Plan decorating around the fitting
When you load the drawers, put the heaviest things low and towards the front. It helps the runners and keeps the storage working well. We size the shelves for what you said you’d store, so it is worth keeping to that plan.
Keep the way to the meter or fuse board clear. Readers and engineers need to reach them, and you may need to as well. With its own door, the meter stays in reach without much effort.
Under-stairs storage in Maida Vale
No two staircases are quite the same. The soffit slopes, the stringer sets its own line, and floors are often a little out of level. Each under-stairs cupboard we make follows those lines, so the fronts sit neatly against the stairs. That’s something a standard unit cannot do, in Maida Vale or anywhere else. If you are living with stairs open to a room, with clutter on show and needing a compact spot for a laptop, under-stairs cupboards made from MDF made to resist moisture and birch plywood, then spray-painted or hand-painted can solve it.
A solid brick outside wall in an older house can be cold and sometimes damp, so storage against it is designed with ventilation behind. A large share of the homes around Maida Vale date from then. Damp should be sorted before anything is fitted against the wall.
The furniture is made in our workshop after you have had the quote and decided to go ahead. It describes the design, the materials and the finish agreed at the visit, so every detail can be checked first.
- Location
- Maida Vale (W9, NW8, NW6)
- Area
- Westminster
- Prices
- Quoted for your room
- First step
- Design visit, then a quote in writing
- Made
- In our workshop, then fitted in your home
- Materials and finish
- MDF and birch plywood, painted
- Fitting days
- Weekdays (Saturdays if arranged)
- Contact
- Send us a message
- Last updated
- 27 October 2026
How fitting works for under-stairs storage
When we arrive on fitting day, we start by protecting your floors and the route from the front door to the room. Next, we carry in the sections made in our workshop, a piece at a time. The time the fitting takes depends on the shape of the space and the number of drawers and doors, and your quote sets out the fitting days. On fitting day, edges are trimmed on site to follow the walls, so a clear area to work in near the room helps. Dust is kept down and cleared up as we go. Hand painting, if that is your finish, can follow the fitting.
- First we hear what’s under your stairs now and what you need, such as coats, shoes or the vacuum cleaner.
- We measure the space, the slope and the floor, and note any meters or fuse boards.
- We talk through drawers, cupboards and coat storage, and send a quote in writing.
- The storage is made at our workshop and painted in your colour. We use moisture-resistant MDF and birch plywood.
- The storage is fitted, scribed to the stairs and checked with you. The way to any meters is left clear.
How to prepare
- Take anything hanging off the wall we are fitting to
- Tell us about any meters, fuse boards or boilers in the area
- Keep pets out of the room and the hallway
How to get a quote
A quote begins with some details from you: the room, rough sizes and some photos if you have them. When you are ready, message us from the contact page. We’ll then arrange a design visit and follow it with a written quote.
Advice
Under-stairs storage in Maida Vale: local notes
The biggest shares of homes in the streets around Maida Vale were built before 1919 (about 49%) and between 1945 and 1972 (about 16%), 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. Within a mile of the centre of Maida Vale, 15 conservation areas are recorded by Historic England. Historic England says England has around 10,000, and the controls mainly cover the outside of buildings, so fitted furniture inside a house does not normally need planning permission. Flats in converted or shared houses account for about 23% of households in the area around Maida Vale, according to Census 2021. Conversions often leave rooms in unusual shapes, with partition walls, boxed-in pipes and chimney breasts in odd places, and the way in often goes up shared stairs. If your flat is leasehold, check your lease before anything is fixed to the walls.
If your home is one of the older houses near St Peter Elgin Avenue, under-stairs cupboards are scribed to walls and stair strings that are rarely straight. Close to Emslie Horniman's Pleasance? Living near green space often means muddy boots, bikes and outdoor kit, and under-stairs cupboards can give those things a place. Winfield House, about 1.1 miles east, is one of the historic houses in the wider area. For a period home anywhere nearby, the triangle under an old staircase is often deeper than it looks.
Maida Vale is part of the City of Westminster, about 2 miles south-east of City of Westminster. We can visit homes in Maida Vale on weekdays, or on a Saturday by arrangement. We list Maida Vale among 29 places we cover in Westminster.
Every home in W9, NW8 and NW6 is within our area for under-stairs storage, from the main roads to the quieter streets. We cover homes on streets like The Lane, Hall Road and Hill Road, whether you want under-stairs storage or another piece made for the room. Maida Vale is near the A404, so if your home is on a main road, mention it when you get in touch. Nearby, we also make under-stairs storage in Westbourne Green (1 mile south), Little Venice (1 mile south-east), Paddington Green (1 mile south-east), Westbourne (1 mile south) and St John's Wood (1 mile north-east). We also make under-stairs storage in nearby places such as City of Westminster (2 miles south-east), Marylebone (2 miles east), Soho (3 miles east), Chinatown (3 miles south-east), St James's (3 miles south-east) and Covent Garden (3 miles east).
Local landmarks in Maida Vale
Our area takes in the homes around Maida Vale School, The Warrington pub and Cecil Sharp House. The nearest railway station is Kilburn High Road station, about 0.7 miles north of the centre. Nearby you will also find O2 Centre (1.5 miles north) and Greek Orthodox Cathedral Treasury Museum (1 mile south). Open spaces near Maida Vale include The Long Water and Greville Place nature reserve.
Boards, parts and paint
Plinths and scribe strips
Floors under the stairs are often out of level. We set the storage level on a plinth or adjustable feet, so everything opens and closes as it should.
Hand-painted finish
A hand-painted finish can be applied once the storage is in place. Marks can be touched in without much trouble. Like any new paint, it needs time to cure fully.
Common questions about under-stairs storage
Is Maida Vale in the area you cover for under-stairs storage?
Yes, we work across Westminster, Maida Vale included, and across the rest of London. You can use our contact form to arrange a design visit.
Does a conservation area in or near Maida Vale affect fitted furniture?
Not normally. Conservation area controls are largely about how buildings look from outside, so fitted furniture inside a house does not 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.
Do photos help?
Yes. They give us a feel for the space before we visit, along with rough sizes. Show anything the furniture has to work around, such as radiators or sockets.
What materials do you use for under-stairs storage?
Moisture-resistant MDF and birch plywood, with a spray-painted or hand-painted finish. Drawer boxes are birch plywood, as it’s strong and holds screws firmly. The materials and finish are agreed in your quote.
Does someone need to be home during the fitting?
Someone needs to let us in at the start of the day. It also helps to have someone around at the end, so we can go over the finished furniture together.
What if my walls and floors are out of level?
That is normal in older homes, and it is what scribing is for. Edges are scribed to the wall, and adjustable feet or a plinth bring the furniture up to level.
DIY, flat-pack or bespoke
What you pay for with bespoke is mainly the fit: edges scribed to the wall, a level base on a sloping floor and a neat line where the furniture meets the ceiling. Off-the-shelf furniture cannot usually do that in an older room.
Flat-pack and off-the-shelf furniture has its place. In a room with square walls and standard sizes, it can work well, and it’s quick to buy.
Neighbourhoods near Maida Vale
More for homes in Maida Vale
Flats, conversions and lettings
Landlords furnishing a let use fitted furniture too, as it makes good use of an awkward room. The materials are the same as for any home: moisture-resistant MDF and birch plywood, with a spray or hand-painted finish.
If your building is on a red route or a busy main road, unloading takes some planning. TfL runs the red routes, and the stopping rules are strict, so let us know about it during the design visit.