A Rising ‘Posh-Poor Divide’: How Affluence and Hardship Now Sit Cheek by Jowl in Across England.

Within Nunsthorpe, inhabitants live in properties just a few metres from their wealthier neighbours in nearby Scartho. A 1.8-metre-high wall literally separates the two areas in the town of Grimsby, blocking off paths and streets that once linked them.

“This is the divide between rich and poor,” said a resident, 37. “It has been there since I’ve known. I doubt they’ll bring it down because I suspect they’ll want to associate with us.”

An Increasingly Common National Picture

Data from official statistics shows how deep disparity can run, at times across nothing more than a few metres of tarmac, a line of hedges or a barrier. Decades of austerity and lack of funding mean almost two-thirds of councils now contain a locality ranking as one of the most deprived in the nation.

This spread of poverty has led to a sharp rise in the quantity of locations where deprived and affluent residents end up living side by side. In 2019, only 65 of the poorest neighbourhoods bordered one of the least deprived. This number rose to 119 in the latest data.

A Barrier Which Divides More Than Space

At this Lincolnshire site, the gap is the most pronounced in the country and painfully apparent. The wall is much more than a metaphorical divide; it causes very real problems for daily routines.

• The school commute that ought to take a quarter of an hour become an sixty-minute detour.
• Reaching important services like supermarkets, educational facilities and care homes is hindered.
• The area can attract antisocial behaviour, with instances of litter being thrown over the wall and other problems.

“People strive to have a nice house and nice garden, and then you live opposite that,” said one resident, gesturing towards the corroded metal wall.

Community Spirit Against a Backdrop of Challenges

At Centre4, staff emphasise that need does not recognise postcodes. “Where you live doesn’t necessarily indicate your personal struggles,” explained chief executive Tracey Good.

Despite being placed in the lowest 10% for income, employment, education, health and crime, Nunsthorpe retains a strong sense and feeling of togetherness among its residents. By contrast, Scartho is classified among the most prosperous 10% nationally.

Echoes Elsewhere: An Estate in Kent

This pattern is repeated nationally. The Stanhope area in Ashford, Kent, a 1960s housing development, is in the most disadvantaged tenth of areas in England. It is immediately adjacent by large detached homes built in the early 2000s that are in the top 10% for employment and living environment.

“They might have bigger houses, but here there’s a stronger community,” said Phil Hockley, aged 63. “It’s likely a lot of people in the new builds don’t even speak to each other.”

The economic gap is evident: an typical three-bedroom house costs about £275,000 on the estate, while across the divide equivalent homes fetch about £410,000.

Locals speak of a tangible sense of being overlooked. “This part of the community is neglected,” stated holistic health worker Susan. “Over here our amenities have slowly been taken away, and the majority of the community problems here are to do with poverty.”

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