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

In a postwar estate known as ‘The Nunny’, residents occupy properties just a few metres from their wealthier neighbours in nearby Scartho village. A six-foot-tall wall literally divides the two communities in Grimsby, Lincolnshire, sealing off paths and streets that once linked them.

“This is the divide between rich and poor,” said 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 associate with us.”

A Stark National Picture

Data from official figures reveals the extent of disparity often exists, at times across little more than a short distance of asphalt, a line of hedges or a barrier. Years of budget cuts and lack of funding mean a majority of councils now contain a locality ranking as one of the poorest in the nation.

The geographical widening of poverty has led to a significant rise in the number of locations where disadvantaged and affluent people end up living side by side. In 2019, only 65 of the poorest areas bordered one of the wealthiest. This number increased to 119 in the latest data.

A Barrier Which Does More Than Separate Land

In Grimsby, the divide is the biggest in the UK and starkly apparent. The barrier transcends being just a metaphorical division; it causes tangible problems for everyday life.

• The school commute that should take a quarter of an hour turn into an sixty-minute journey.
• Access to key amenities like supermarkets, schools and care homes is made more difficult.
• The site can attract vandalism and loitering, with reports of rubbish being thrown over the wall and other issues.

“You try to have a well-kept home and garden, and then you reside facing that,” said one resident, motioning at the corroded barricade.

Local Bonds Against a Backdrop of Challenges

Within Centre4, workers stress that need transcends postcodes. “Where you live is not a reliable indicator of your personal struggles,” said chief executive a community leader.

Despite ranking in the most deprived 10% for multiple deprivation indicators, the estate retains a fierce loyalty and sense of community among its inhabitants. By contrast, Scartho is classified among the most prosperous 10% overall.

A Similar Story: Stanhope in Ashford

This phenomenon is mirrored nationally. The Stanhope estate in Ashford, Kent, a 1960s overspill estate, is in the 10% most deprived of neighbourhoods in England. It is immediately adjacent by large detached homes built in the 2000s that are in the top 10% for employment and quality of surroundings.

“They might have larger properties, but here there’s more 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 divide is clear: an average family home costs about £275,000 on the estate, while across the divide equivalent homes go for about £410,000.

Residents speak of a palpable feeling of being overlooked. “Our neighbourhood gets ignored,” said holistic health worker Susan Riley-Nevers. “In this area our facilities have gradually disappeared, and most of the community problems here are to do with financial hardship.”

The rise in these ‘deprivation divides’ paints a picture of an increasingly divided society, where prosperity and deprivation are often awkwardly in close proximity.