A Rising ‘Wealth-Poverty Gap’: How Prosperity and Deprivation Are Found Cheek by Jowl in England.
Within a postwar estate known as ‘The Nunny’, residents live in properties only a few metres from their more affluent counterparts in nearby Scartho village. One 1.8-metre-high barricade literally divides the two areas in the town of Grimsby, sealing off roads and walkways that previously connected them.
“This is the posh-poor divide,” remarked Serenity Colley, 37. “It’s been like this since I’ve known. I don’t think they’ll bring it down because I don’t think they’ll want to mix with us.”
An Increasingly Common National Picture
Analysis of government statistics reveals the extent of disparity can run, at times over nothing more than a short distance of asphalt, a hedge row or a wall. Years of austerity and lack of funding mean a majority of local authorities now contain a locality ranking as one of the poorest in the nation.
The spread of deprivation has coincided with a significant rise in the number of places where disadvantaged and affluent people end up living side by side. In 2019, only 65 of the poorest neighbourhoods bordered one of the wealthiest. That figure increased to 119 in the latest data.
A Wall That Divides More Than Space
In Grimsby, the divide is the most pronounced in the UK and painfully obvious. The barrier transcends being just a symbolic division; it creates very real problems for everyday life.
- The school commute that ought to take 15-20 minutes turn into an hour-long journey.
- Access to key amenities like grocery stores, schools and care homes is made more difficult.
- The area can attract antisocial behaviour, with instances of litter being dumped over the wall and related problems.
“People strive to have a well-kept home and garden, and then you live opposite that,” noted one resident, gesturing towards the rusted barricade.
Local Bonds Against a Backdrop of Hardship
Within a local community centre, workers stress that support transcends postcodes. “Where you live is not a reliable indicator of your personal struggles,” explained director Tracey Good.
Despite ranking in the most deprived 10% for multiple deprivation indicators, Nunsthorpe boasts a fierce loyalty and feeling of community among its inhabitants. By contrast, Scartho ranks among the least deprived 10% nationally.
A Similar Story: Stanhope in Ashford
This pattern is repeated nationally. The Stanhope area in Kent, a 1960s overspill estate, is in the most disadvantaged tenth of areas in England. It is closely bordered by spacious houses built in the 2000s that sit in the top 10% for job prospects and living environment.
“They might have bigger houses, but here there’s a stronger community,” said Phil Hockley, 63. “It’s likely a lot of people over there don’t even speak to each other.”
The economic gap is evident: an typical three-bedroom house sells for about £275,000 on the Stanhope estate, while on the other side equivalent homes fetch about £410,000.
Residents speak of a palpable feeling of neglect. “This part of the community is neglected,” stated resident Susan. “In this area our facilities have slowly been taken away, and the majority of the community problems here are to do with financial hardship.”
The increase in these ‘deprivation divides’ presents a picture of an ever more segregated England, where prosperity and need are frequently awkwardly in close proximity.
