A Rising ‘Posh-Poor Divide’: How Prosperity and Deprivation Are Found Cheek by Jowl in Across England.
Within Nunsthorpe, inhabitants live in homes just several yards from their wealthier counterparts in nearby Scartho. One six-foot-tall barricade physically separates the two areas in the town of Grimsby, sealing off paths and streets that previously connected them.
“This is the divide between rich and poor,” remarked a resident, 37. “It has been there for as long as I’ve known. I don’t think they’ll bring it down because I don’t think they’ll want to associate with us.”
An Increasingly Common National Picture
Analysis of government figures shows how deep disparity often exists, at times across nothing more than a short distance of asphalt, a line of hedges or a barrier. Years of budget cuts and underinvestment mean almost two-thirds of local authorities now have a locality ranking as one of the most deprived in the nation.
The spread of deprivation has led to a significant increase in the quantity of places where deprived and affluent people find themselves living side by side. Just a few years ago, only 65 of the most deprived neighbourhoods bordered one of the least deprived. This number rose to 119 in the most recent data.
A Barrier Which Does More Than Separate Space
In Grimsby, the divide is the biggest in the country and painfully obvious. The wall is much more than a symbolic division; it causes tangible problems for everyday life.
- The school commute that should take a quarter of an hour turn into an hour-long journey.
- Access to key amenities like grocery stores, educational facilities and employment centres is hindered.
- The site often sees vandalism and loitering, with instances of rubbish being dumped over the wall and other problems.
“People strive to maintain a well-kept home and garden, and then you live opposite that,” noted one local, motioning at the corroded barricade.
Local Bonds Amidst Challenges
Within Centre4, workers emphasise that support does not recognise addresses. “Your postcode is not a reliable indicator of your level of challenge,” said chief executive Tracey Good.
Despite ranking in the lowest 10% for income, employment, education, health and crime, the estate retains a strong sense and feeling of community among its inhabitants. By contrast, Scartho ranks among the most prosperous 10% nationally.
A Similar Story: An Estate in Kent
This phenomenon is repeated nationally. The Stanhope area in Ashford, Kent, a 1960s overspill estate, is in the most disadvantaged tenth of neighbourhoods in England. It is closely bordered by spacious houses built in the 2000s that sit in the wealthiest tenth for job prospects and living environment.
“They might have bigger houses, but here there’s more community,” commented a long-term resident, aged 63. “You’ll probably find many people over there don’t even speak to each other.”
The economic gap is clear: an average family home costs about £275,000 on the Stanhope estate, while across the divide equivalent homes go for about £410,000.
Residents describe a palpable feeling of neglect. “This part of the community gets ignored,” stated holistic health worker Susan. “Over here our facilities have gradually disappeared, and most of the issues we face here are related to poverty.”
The increase in these ‘inequality borders’ paints a portrait of an ever more segregated England, where wealth and need are frequently awkwardly in close proximity.
