A Rising ‘Wealth-Poverty Gap’: How Prosperity and Hardship Now Sit Cheek by Jowl in Across England.

Within Nunsthorpe, residents occupy homes only a few metres from their more affluent counterparts in the adjacent Scartho. One 1.8-metre-high barricade literally divides the two communities in the town of Grimsby, sealing off roads and walkways that once connected them.

“This is the posh-poor divide,” said a resident, 37. “It has been there since I’ve known. I don’t think they’ll bring it down because I suspect they’ll want to mix with us.”

A Stark National Picture

Data from official statistics reveals the extent of disparity often exists, at times across nothing more than a few metres of tarmac, a line of hedges or a barrier. Decades of austerity and underinvestment have led to a situation where a majority of local authorities now contain a locality classified as one of the most deprived in the nation.

The spread of poverty has led to a sharp rise in the number of locations where disadvantaged and well-off people find themselves living side by side. Just a few years ago, just 65 of the poorest neighbourhoods adjoined one of the wealthiest. That figure increased to 119 in the most recent data.

A Wall That Divides More Than Space

In Grimsby, the divide is the most pronounced in the country and starkly obvious. The barrier is much more than a symbolic divide; it causes very real problems for everyday life.

• The school commute that ought to take 15-20 minutes turn into an sixty-minute journey.
• Reaching important services like supermarkets, schools and employment centres is made more difficult.
• The site can attract antisocial behaviour, with reports of rubbish being thrown over the wall and related issues.

“People strive to maintain a nice house and nice garden, and then you reside facing that,” noted one resident, gesturing towards the corroded barricade.

Local Bonds Against a Backdrop of Hardship

At a local community centre, workers stress that need transcends addresses. “Your postcode doesn’t necessarily indicate your personal struggles,” said chief executive a community leader.

Regardless of ranking in the lowest 10% for income, employment, education, health and crime, the estate retains a strong sense and sense of togetherness among its residents. Meanwhile, the neighbouring area is classified among the least deprived 10% overall.

A Similar Story: Stanhope in Ashford

This pattern is repeated across the country. The Stanhope estate in Ashford, Kent, a 1960s overspill estate, is in the 10% most deprived of neighbourhoods in the country. It is closely bordered by large detached homes built in the 2000s that sit in the top 10% for employment and living environment.

“They may possess bigger houses, but here there’s more community,” commented Phil Hockley, aged 63. “You’ll probably find many people over there never even talk to each other.”

The economic divide is clear: an typical three-bedroom house costs about £275,000 on the Stanhope estate, while on the other side equivalent homes go for about £410,000.

Residents speak of a tangible feeling of being overlooked. “Our neighbourhood gets ignored,” stated holistic health worker Susan Riley-Nevers. “In this area our facilities have slowly been taken away, and most of the community problems here are related to poverty.”

The rise in these ‘deprivation divides’ presents a portrait of an ever more segregated society, where prosperity and need are often uncomfortably in close proximity.