The Rising ‘Wealth-Poverty Gap’: The Way Affluence and Deprivation Are Found Side by Side in England.

In Nunsthorpe, residents live in homes only several yards from their more affluent counterparts in the adjacent Scartho village. One 1.8-metre-high barricade literally separates the two areas in the town of Grimsby, blocking off paths and streets that previously connected them.

“It’s the posh-poor divide,” remarked a resident, 37. “It’s been like this since I’ve known. I doubt they’ll take it down because I don’t think they’ll want to associate with us.”

A Stark National Picture

Analysis of official figures reveals the extent of disparity often exists, at times across little more than a short distance of tarmac, a line of hedges or a wall. Decades of austerity and lack of funding have led to a situation where almost two-thirds of local authorities now contain a locality ranking as one of the poorest in the country.

This spread of deprivation has led to a sharp rise in the number of locations where disadvantaged and well-off people end up as immediate neighbours. In 2019, only 65 of the most deprived areas bordered one of the least deprived. This number increased to 119 in the latest data.

A Barrier Which Does More Than Separate Land

In Grimsby, the divide is the most pronounced in the UK and starkly apparent. The barrier is much more than a symbolic divide; it creates tangible difficulties for everyday life.

• The school commute that should take a quarter of an hour turn into an sixty-minute detour.
• Access to key amenities like grocery stores, schools and care homes is hindered.
• The area often sees antisocial behaviour, with instances of litter being dumped over the wall and other issues.

“You try to maintain a nice house and nice garden, and then you live opposite that,” said one resident, gesturing towards the rusted barricade.

Local Bonds Against a Backdrop of Hardship

Within Centre4, workers stress that need transcends postcodes. “Where you live doesn’t necessarily indicate your personal struggles,” said director a community leader.

Regardless of ranking in the most deprived 10% for income, employment, education, health and crime, the estate boasts a fierce loyalty and feeling of togetherness among its inhabitants. Meanwhile, the neighbouring area is classified among the least deprived 10% overall.

Echoes Elsewhere: An Estate in Kent

This phenomenon is mirrored across the country. The Stanhope estate in Ashford, Kent, a 1960s housing development, is in the 10% most deprived of areas in the country. It is immediately adjacent by spacious houses built in the 2000s that are in the top 10% for employment and quality of surroundings.

“They may possess bigger houses, but here there’s a stronger community,” commented Phil Hockley, aged 63. “You’ll probably find many people over there don’t even speak to each other.”

The economic divide is clear: an typical family home sells for about £275,000 on the estate, while on the other side comparable properties fetch about £410,000.

Locals describe a tangible feeling of neglect. “This part of the community gets ignored,” stated resident Susan. “Over here our facilities have gradually disappeared, and most of the community problems here are related to poverty.”

The increase in these ‘deprivation divides’ paints a portrait of an ever more divided society, where prosperity and deprivation are frequently uncomfortably in close proximity.