Bromley · London
Penge Under-Stairs Storage
We make under-stairs storage in moisture-resistant MDF and birch plywood for homes in Penge. The finish is spray painted or hand painted, in a colour agreed with you.
- Storage that doesn’t match the hallway
- A vacuum cleaner that has nowhere to go
- Space under the stairs that is hard to use
Need under-stairs storage in Penge?
Under-stairs storage in Penge: local notes
About 47% of the homes in the streets around Penge went up before 1919, and about 20% between 1973 and 1999, going by the Valuation Office Agency’s 2025 council tax figures. We take that into account at the measuring visit, since older and newer walls take different fixings. Near the centre of Penge, Historic England’s list includes The White House (Grade II), under half a mile north-east, and Church of St John the Evangelist (Grade II), under half a mile east. If you live in a listed building, fixing into or taking out original features like panelling can need listed building consent. It is worth speaking to the council’s conservation officer before the design is final. The ULEZ (Ultra Low Emission Zone) now covers the whole of London, Bromley included. That includes the vans that bring and fit furniture in Penge. Access and parking are talked through during the design visit.
For a flat near Penge West station, it helps to book the lift and tell the concierge before fitting day. Kingswood House, about 1.4 miles north-west, 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.
Penge is about 7 miles east of Orpington, within the London Borough of Bromley. We cover Penge as part of our work across Bromley, and the process is the same everywhere we work. In Bromley, Penge is one of the places we cover.
We cover every part of the SE20, SE19 and SE26 postcode area. Streets in the area include High Street, Anerley Station Road and Station Road, and homes on each of them are within our area for under-stairs storage. Penge sits close to the A234. If your home is on one of them, tell us at the design visit, as some main roads have strict stopping rules. We also cover Anerley (1 mile west), Crystal Palace (1 mile north-west), Sydenham (1 mile north), Gipsy Hill (1 mile north-west) and Upper Norwood (1 mile west). Other parts of Bromley we cover include Orpington (7 miles east), Bromley (3 miles east), St Mary Cray (7 miles east), Chislehurst (5 miles east), Biggin Hill (8 miles south-east) and Plaistow (3 miles east).
Local landmarks in Penge
In Penge, that includes homes near Crystal Palace School, Crooked Billet pub and Harris City Academy Crystal Palace and the streets around them. There is a railway station in Penge itself: Penge West station. Nearby you will also find Crystal Palace Museum (0.8 miles north-west) and St Christopher's Hospice (0.5 miles north). For a walk, there’s Dulwich Upper Wood.
Under-stairs storage in Penge
Each under-stairs cupboard is made at our workshop, using moisture-resistant MDF and birch plywood. Birch plywood suits drawer boxes and carcasses, as it’s strong and holds screws firmly, and MDF gives the doors and fronts a smooth surface for paint. The finish is sprayed or hand-painted, and then the storage is fitted in your home in Penge. If your home has cleaning things with no proper home and storage that doesn’t match the hallway, 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 a gap and ventilation behind fitted storage help avoid condensation. That matters around Penge, where a large share of the homes are that old. Damp should be sorted before anything is fitted against the wall.
Everything we agree at the design visit goes into the written quote: the layout, what goes inside, the materials used and the finish. If something isn’t quite right, tell us before anything is made.
- Location
- Penge (SE20, SE19, SE26)
- Borough
- Bromley
- Price
- Quoted for your room
- To begin
- A design visit: we measure and talk it through
- Where it is made
- Workshop-made, then fitted
- Made from
- MDF and plywood, painted to order
- When we fit
- Weekdays, and Saturdays by arrangement
- Get in touch
- The contact form
- Last updated
- 27 October 2026
Other services in Penge
Do you need under-stairs storage in Penge?
Most people get in touch because the space has become a dumping ground. Under the stairs is easy to fill and hard to sort, with things pushed to the back and lost in the dark. Purpose-made drawers and shelves give everything its own place, so you can find what you need without emptying the cupboard.
People usually get in touch with us about needs like these:
- A hallway crowded with coats and shoes
- Cleaning things with no proper home
- Space under the stairs that is hard to use
- A meter or fuse board buried behind clutter
If your home is one of the older houses near Church of St John the Evangelist, pull-out drawers can reach right to the back of a deep under-stairs space.
Before you hire any carpenter
- How they handle walls that aren’t straight
- Whether the route into your home has been checked
- Who does any electrics, plumbing or gas work
- Can you see real work of theirs?
Fitting day, step by step
With the carcasses fixed and level, any doors go on and any drawers or lids are fitted. We adjust each one so the gaps line up and it closes cleanly, then checked again. How long 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. Where a period house has been split into flats, the way in often goes through shared parts, so it’s useful to let neighbours know about fitting day. The sections are sized for the narrowest point on the route. Saturday fitting is possible by arrangement.
- To begin, tell us about the room on our contact form; a brief note on the space and what it holds now is plenty.
- We visit to measure the slope and the floor, and agree a design that keeps any meter or fuse board accessible.
- A quote in writing follows, setting out the design, materials and finish.
- We make it in our workshop from moisture-resistant MDF and birch plywood, with a door or panel left where the meters need access.
- The storage is fitted and set level, and the meter access is checked with you.
Before fitting day
- Move furniture and belongings away from the wall
- Take anything hanging off the wall we are fitting to
- Make sure pets are kept safely away
Getting a quote
If you already have something in mind, tell us; if you do not, that’s fine, and we can work it out together. At the design visit, we measure up and talk the design through with you, and the written quote then sets it out. To arrange a visit, get in touch through our contact form.
Read more
Questions we are often asked
Will a conservation area stop me having under-stairs storage fitted in Penge?
Not normally. Conservation area controls are mostly concerned with the outside of buildings, so fitted furniture inside a house doesn’t normally need planning permission. Listed buildings are different, as works inside that affect their character can require listed building consent from the council. If you are unsure, the council can confirm.
My house in Penge is Victorian. Can you deal with uneven walls?
Yes. Walls in older houses are rarely flat or square, and floors are often out of level, so each piece is scribed to follow the wall and set level on a plinth or adjustable feet. We also work around skirting boards, picture rails and cornices. Older walls can be solid brick or lath and plaster, and the fixings are chosen to suit.
Do pictures help?
Yes. They give us a feel for the space before we visit. It helps to show radiators, sockets and anything else on the wall.
Can you make under-stairs storage for a home in Penge?
Yes, we do. We work in Penge and across Bromley, and the process is the same everywhere we go.
Is it possible to have a desk built under the stairs?
It depends on the height and how open the space is. At the design visit we will say whether a desk makes sense there. If it does, a compact desk with shelving can suit paperwork and a laptop.
What materials do you use for under-stairs storage?
The storage is made from moisture-resistant MDF and birch plywood. The doors and fronts are MDF, which is stable and paints well, while birch plywood gives strength to the drawers and carcasses. The finish is spray-painted or hand-painted.
Bespoke or off-the-shelf?
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.
In London, parking can affect the price. The boroughs run controlled parking zones across much of the city, so a van may need a visitor permit, a paid bay or a bay suspension near your home. Tell us about parking at the measuring visit.
Why choose Bespoke Carpentry in Penge
- Saturday visits and fitting by arrangement
- A spray or hand-painted finish
- Edges scribed to follow your walls
- Made in our workshop, then fitted in your home
See how bespoke compares with ready-made and what to look for in a quote.
Where other trades come in
It’s worth being clear about where our work stops:
- Plastering and decorating around the new storage
- Relocating meters, which your energy supplier deals with
- New sockets, lights or wiring, which are for your electrician
If you are not sure what’s possible in your room, you can message us from the contact page and we will give you a straight answer before you arrange a visit. How it works.
What goes into it
- Moisture-resistant MDF
- Spray-painted finish
- Pull-out drawers
- Hand-painted finish
- Coat hooks and shoe shelves
- Birch plywood
Flats, conversions and lettings
Many London terraces have been converted into flats, which often brings a shared hall and tight turns on the stairs. Each section is sized with that in mind, after measuring the route at the design visit.
For flats on red routes or busy main roads, getting the furniture from the van to the door needs planning. Red routes are run by TfL and have strict stopping rules, so let us know about it at the measuring visit.