The Rising ‘Wealth-Poverty Gap’: The Way Affluence and Deprivation Now Sit Cheek by Jowl in England.
Within a postwar estate known as ‘The Nunny’, residents live in homes only several yards from their more affluent neighbours in nearby Scartho. One six-foot-tall wall literally divides the two communities in Grimsby, Lincolnshire, blocking off paths and streets that previously connected them.
“It’s the posh-poor divide,” said a resident, 37. “It has been there for as long as I’ve known. I doubt they’ll bring it down because I suspect they’ll want to mix with us.”
An Increasingly Common National Picture
Analysis of official statistics reveals how deep disparity can run, sometimes across little more than a short distance of asphalt, a hedge row or a wall. Years of budget cuts and lack of funding mean almost two-thirds of local authorities now contain a neighbourhood ranking as one of the poorest in the nation.
The spread of deprivation has coincided with a significant rise in the quantity of locations where disadvantaged and well-off people find themselves as immediate neighbours. In 2019, just 65 of the most deprived areas adjoined one of the least deprived. That figure rose to 119 in the latest data.
A Wall That Does More Than Separate Space
In Grimsby, the divide is the biggest in the UK and starkly obvious. The barrier transcends being just a metaphorical divide; it creates tangible problems for everyday life.
- The school commute that should take a quarter of an hour turn into an hour-long journey.
- Access to key amenities like supermarkets, schools and employment centres is made more difficult.
- The site often sees vandalism and loitering, with reports of litter being dumped over the wall and other problems.
“You try to maintain a well-kept home and garden, and then you live opposite that,” noted one resident, motioning at the corroded barricade.
Community Spirit Amidst Hardship
At a local community centre, staff emphasise that need transcends postcodes. “Where you live doesn’t necessarily indicate your personal struggles,” explained chief executive a community leader.
Regardless of ranking in the most deprived 10% for income, employment, education, health and crime, Nunsthorpe boasts a strong sense and sense of togetherness among its inhabitants. Meanwhile, the neighbouring area ranks among the least deprived 10% nationally.
A Similar Story: An Estate in Kent
This pattern is mirrored nationally. The Stanhope area in Ashford, Kent, a 1960s overspill estate, is in the 10% most deprived of areas in the country. It is closely bordered by spacious detached homes built in the early 2000s that sit in the top 10% for employment and living environment.
“They may possess bigger houses, but here there’s more community,” said Phil Hockley, aged 63. “It’s likely many people in the new builds don’t even speak to each other.”
The financial divide is evident: an typical family home costs about £275,000 on the estate, while on the other side comparable properties fetch about £410,000.
Residents speak of a tangible sense of neglect. “This part of the community is neglected,” stated resident Susan Riley-Nevers. “In this area our facilities have slowly been taken away, and the majority of the community problems here are related to poverty.”
The increase in these ‘deprivation divides’ presents a portrait of an ever more segregated England, where wealth and deprivation are frequently uncomfortably in close proximity.