Example photo by Franco Debartolo on Unsplash, not our project
Bexley · London
Foots Cray Window Seats
Window seats for bays and under sash windows, with storage inside, for homes in Foots Cray. We measure, design and quote first, then make it in our workshop and fit it.
- A period room that needs furniture to suit it
- Looking for a reading spot by the window
- Wanting a seat without blocking the radiator
Window seats in Foots Cray
How we make window seats for Foots Cray
Some window seats are built in with shelves or cupboards around them. Shelving on each side, with the seat in the middle, makes a natural reading spot. We design the seat and the surrounding units together, so the whole wall looks considered. It is worth talking through during the design visit in Foots Cray. We make window seats from moisture-resistant MDF and birch plywood, spray-painted or hand-painted, and the usual reasons to get in touch are a nursery or bedroom short of storage and a period room that needs furniture to suit it.
Many homes around Foots Cray date from the post-war decades. Homes from that era tend to have simpler shapes than older houses, with fewer recesses, so window seats often create the storage the house never had. The fixings are chosen for the wall, whether it’s concrete, blockwork or brick.
The quote names the materials: moisture-resistant MDF, birch plywood or both, depending on the design. It also says how the furniture will be finished: spray painted or hand painted.
- Where
- Foots Cray (DA14, BR5)
- Borough
- Bexley
- Prices
- Quoted for your room
- First step
- We visit, measure, then quote
- Made
- Workshop-made, then fitted
- Made from
- MDF and birch plywood, painted
- Working days
- Monday to Friday; Saturdays by arrangement
- Get in touch
- Our contact form
- Updated
- 27 October 2026
Making use of awkward spaces in Foots Cray
Homes built between 1945 and 1972 make up about 51% of the housing in the neighbourhood around Foots Cray, with about 20% built between 1919 and 1939, based on the Valuation Office Agency’s 2025 council tax data. Knowing roughly when a home was built helps, because walls and fixings change from one era to the next. Entries on the National Heritage List near the centre of Foots Cray include Frognal House (Grade II*), under half a mile west, and Parish Church of All Saints (Grade II*), about 0.5 miles north-east. If you live in a listed building, fixing into or taking out original features like panelling may need listed building consent. The council’s conservation officer is the person to ask before work starts. Controlled parking zones are run by the boroughs, so the rules in Bexley are set locally. Where a street in Foots Cray is controlled, a van may need a visitor permit, a paid bay or a bay suspension from the council. Tell us what the parking is like at the design visit.
Danson House, about 2.8 miles north, is one of the historic houses in the wider area. For a period home anywhere nearby, a bay or a sash window is a natural place for a window seat. If your children go to Orchard Primary School or a school nearby, window seats can give school bags, shoes and sports kit a proper home.
Foots Cray is about 1 mile north-west of Sidcup, part of the London Borough of Bexley. From period terraces to newer flats in Foots Cray, we measure the room as it is and design around it. Foots Cray is one of 27 places on our list for Bexley.
We cover every part of DA14 and BR5. Whether you live on a street such as Cray Road, Evry Road and The Avenue or on one nearby, we can arrange a design visit for window seats. The A223 runs close to Foots Cray, so if your home is on a main road, mention it when you get in touch. We also cover the places around Foots Cray: Ruxley (1 mile east), Albany Park (1 mile north-west), Upper Ruxley (1 mile east), Sidcup (1 mile north-west) and North Cray (2 miles north-east). Elsewhere in Bexley, we also cover Welling (3 miles north), Erith (5 miles north-east), Bexley (2 miles north-east), Belvedere (5 miles north), Northumberland Heath (5 miles north-east) and Lessness Heath (5 miles north).
What’s near Foots Cray
The streets we cover here include those near Red Lion pub, Kemnal Technology College and Walsingham School. The nearest railway station is Sidcup station, about 1.4 miles north of the centre. Well-known places in the area include Metropolitan Police Museum (1.3 miles north-west) and Queen Mary's Hospital (0.6 miles west).
What happens on fitting day
When the fitting is done, we tidy the room. Before we leave, we go over the finished piece together and answer any questions. How long fitting takes depends on the shape of the bay or recess and what goes under the seat, and your quote sets out the fitting days. Drilling into concrete is noisier than into brick or plaster, so a word with the neighbours before fitting day can help. We work within any rules your building has on noise and hours. Dust is kept down and cleared as we go.
- You get in touch with a few details about the window.
- We visit to measure and talk about how you will use the seat.
- A quote in writing follows, with the fitting days agreed.
- We make the seat, the lids or drawers and any grille in our workshop, from moisture-resistant MDF and birch plywood.
- The seat is fitted and set level, ready for a cushion.
Before fitting day
- Let us know if your street is in a controlled parking zone
- Have your electrician move any sockets or switches beforehand
- Book any lift and let the concierge or building manager know
Arranging a design visit
The quote is built from the design visit. We take full measurements, see how true the walls and floors are and work through the design together. A written quote follows the visit. To arrange the visit, send us a few details through our contact form.
Advice
DIY, flat-pack or bespoke
Bespoke work comes into its own in rooms that aren’t square. In period homes, walls lean, floors slope and the alcoves on each side are often different widths, and standard units leave gaps.
A confident DIYer can manage simple shelves or a standard wardrobe in a square room. It gets harder with sloping ceilings, out-of-level floors and lath-and-plaster walls, because scribing and the right fixings start to matter.
Is it time for window seats?
Parents often want a window seat for a child’s room, with toy storage below. Drawers make it easy for children to reach their things. It also keeps the floor clear.
Most of the enquiries we get are about needs like these:
- A bay window that’s hard to furnish
- A radiator under the window getting in the way
- A child’s room that needs storage and seating
- A recess under the window doing nothing
If your home is one of the older houses near Parish Church of All Saints, window seats can be scribed to follow a bay that is rarely square.
Before you choose who makes it
- Are the boards named, like MDF or plywood?
- Will other trades be needed, and who arranges them?
- How the doors are hung and adjusted
- Have they thought about parking near you?
Places near Foots Cray
What else we make in Foots Cray
Practical tips
New paint needs time to cure fully, so treat it gently at first. Beyond that, these tips help:
- Note the position of any radiator and its pipes
- Think about whether you’d like shelves either side
- Tell us about parking at the design visit
- Make room so the whole bay can be measured
If you’re having a cushion made, we will give you the exact size of the seat. Let the paint cure before the cushion goes on, so the fabric does not stick or mark the finish.
Check now and then that hinges and handles are tight. A loose screw is easy to tighten before it works loose. If a lid or drawer starts to catch, drop us a line using the contact form and describe what’s happening.
Common questions about window seats
Do I need permission for fitted furniture in a conservation area?
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 can require listed building consent from the council. The council’s planning or conservation team can tell you if in doubt.
Is Foots Cray in the area you cover for window seats?
Yes, we work across Bexley, Foots Cray included, and across the rest of London. To get started, you can tell us about the room on our contact form with some details.
What happens when you come to measure?
We measure the room, check how level the walls and floors are and talk through the design with you. Access and parking are worth talking about too, and afterwards we send a written quote.
Can you fit furniture to uneven walls?
Uneven walls are normal in older London homes, and the furniture is made to deal with them. Edges are scribed to the wall, and adjustable feet or a plinth bring the furniture up to level.
Do I need to be in when you fit?
Someone needs to let us in. It also helps to have someone around at the end, so we can go over the finished furniture together.
Do you move sockets or add lighting?
No. We are carpenters, so electrical work is for your electrician. We can allow for cable routes in the design.
Flats, conversions and leaseholders
Many London terraces have been converted into flats, which often brings a shared hall and tight turns on the stairs. We plan the size of each section around it, after measuring the route during the design visit.
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.