The Growing ‘Posh-Poor Divide’: The Way Prosperity and Deprivation Now Sit Side by Side in Across England.
Within a postwar estate known as ‘The Nunny’, residents occupy properties just a few metres from their more affluent counterparts in nearby Scartho. A 1.8-metre-high wall physically divides the two communities in the town of Grimsby, blocking off paths and streets that once linked them.
“It’s the divide between rich and poor,” remarked Serenity Colley, aged 37. “It has been there for as long as I’ve known. I doubt they’ll take it down because I suspect they’ll want to mix with us.”
A Stark National Picture
Data from government statistics shows the extent of disparity can run, sometimes over nothing 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 a majority of local authorities now have a locality classified as one of the most deprived in the nation.
The spread of poverty has coincided with a sharp rise in the number of places where disadvantaged and well-off residents end up as immediate neighbours. In 2019, just 65 of the poorest areas adjoined one of the least deprived. That figure increased to 119 in the most recent data.
A Wall That Divides More Than Space
In Grimsby, the gap is the biggest in the country and starkly apparent. The wall transcends being just a symbolic divide; it causes very real problems for everyday life.
- The school commute that ought to take 15-20 minutes turn into an hour-long detour.
- Reaching important amenities like supermarkets, educational facilities and employment centres is made more difficult.
- The site can attract antisocial behaviour, with reports of rubbish being thrown over the wall and related problems.
“People strive to have a well-kept home and garden, and then you reside facing that,” said one resident, motioning at the rusted metal wall.
Community Spirit Amidst Challenges
Within a local community centre, workers stress that need does not recognise addresses. “Your postcode doesn’t necessarily indicate your personal struggles,” said director Tracey Good.
Despite being placed in the lowest 10% for income, employment, education, health and crime, the estate boasts a strong sense and sense of community among its inhabitants. Meanwhile, Scartho is classified among the most prosperous 10% nationally.
A Similar Story: Stanhope in Ashford
This phenomenon is repeated across the country. The Stanhope area in Kent, a 1960s overspill estate, is in the 10% most deprived of neighbourhoods in England. It is immediately adjacent by spacious detached homes built in the early 2000s that sit in the wealthiest tenth for job prospects and living environment.
“They might have larger properties, but here there’s more community,” said Phil Hockley, 63. “It’s likely a lot of people in the new builds never even talk to each other.”
The economic divide is evident: an typical family home sells for about £275,000 on the estate, while on the other side equivalent properties go for about £410,000.
Locals describe a tangible sense of being overlooked. “This part of the community is neglected,” stated holistic health worker Susan Riley-Nevers. “Over here our facilities have slowly been taken away, and the majority of the issues we face here are related to financial hardship.”
The increase in these ‘deprivation divides’ presents a portrait of an increasingly divided society, where wealth and need are frequently awkwardly in close proximity.
