A Growing ‘Posh-Poor Divide’: The Way Prosperity and Deprivation Now Sit Cheek by Jowl in Across England.
In Nunsthorpe, inhabitants occupy properties only a few metres from their more affluent counterparts in the adjacent Scartho. One 1.8-metre-high barricade literally separates the two areas in Grimsby, Lincolnshire, blocking off roads and walkways that once connected them.
“It’s the posh-poor divide,” said Serenity Colley, aged 37. “It’s been like this for as long as I’ve known. I don’t think they’ll bring it down because I don’t think they’ll want to associate with us.”
An Increasingly Common Pattern Across the Country
Analysis of official statistics shows the extent of inequality can run, at times over nothing more than a short distance of asphalt, a line of hedges or a wall. Years of austerity and lack of funding have led to a situation where almost two-thirds of councils now contain a neighbourhood classified as one of the poorest in the nation.
This spread of poverty has led to a significant increase in the number of locations where deprived and well-off residents end up living side by side. In 2019, only 65 of the most deprived areas adjoined one of the wealthiest. This number rose to 119 in the latest data.
A Barrier Which Does More Than Separate Land
In Grimsby, the divide is the most pronounced in the UK and starkly obvious. The barrier is much more than a symbolic divide; it creates very real difficulties for daily routines.
- School runs that should take 15-20 minutes turn into an hour-long detour.
- Reaching important amenities like grocery stores, educational facilities and employment centres is made more difficult.
- The site can attract antisocial behaviour, with instances of rubbish being dumped over the wall and other issues.
“People strive to have a nice house and nice garden, and then you live opposite that,” noted one local, gesturing towards the corroded barricade.
Local Bonds Amidst Hardship
Within a local community centre, staff stress that support transcends postcodes. “Your postcode doesn’t necessarily indicate your personal struggles,” said director a community leader.
Despite ranking in the lowest 10% for multiple deprivation indicators, Nunsthorpe boasts a strong sense and sense of community among its inhabitants. By contrast, the neighbouring area is classified among the least deprived 10% nationally.
A Similar Story: An Estate in Kent
This pattern is repeated across the country. The Stanhope estate in Ashford, Kent, a mid-century housing development, is in the most disadvantaged tenth of areas in the country. It is immediately adjacent by spacious detached homes built in the early 2000s that sit in the wealthiest tenth for job prospects and quality of surroundings.
“They may possess larger properties, but here there’s more community,” said Phil Hockley, aged 63. “You’ll probably find many people in the new builds never even talk to each other.”
The economic divide is evident: an typical three-bedroom house sells for about £275,000 on the estate, while on the other side equivalent properties fetch about £410,000.
Residents describe a tangible feeling of being overlooked. “This part of the community is neglected,” said resident Susan Riley-Nevers. “In this area our amenities have gradually disappeared, and most of the issues we face here are to do with poverty.”
The increase in these ‘inequality borders’ presents a picture of an increasingly segregated England, where wealth and need are frequently awkwardly close neighbours.
