A Growing ‘Wealth-Poverty Gap’: How Prosperity and Deprivation Now Sit Cheek by Jowl in Across England.
Within Nunsthorpe, inhabitants live in homes only a few metres from their more affluent counterparts in the adjacent Scartho. A six-foot-tall wall physically separates the two areas in the town of Grimsby, blocking off roads and walkways that previously linked them.
“This is the posh-poor divide,” remarked Serenity Colley, 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 government figures shows how deep inequality often exists, at times over little more than a few metres of asphalt, a line of hedges or a barrier. Years of austerity and underinvestment mean a majority of local authorities now have a neighbourhood classified as one of the most deprived in the country.
This spread of deprivation has coincided with a sharp rise in the quantity of places where deprived and affluent people find themselves living side by side. Just a few years ago, just 65 of the most deprived neighbourhoods adjoined one of the least deprived. This number rose to 119 in the latest data.
A Barrier Which Does More Than Separate Land
At this Lincolnshire site, the gap is the biggest in the UK and starkly apparent. The wall transcends being just a metaphorical division; it causes tangible difficulties for daily routines.
- 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 site often sees vandalism and loitering, with instances of litter being dumped over the wall and related issues.
“People strive to maintain a well-kept home and garden, and then you live opposite that,” noted one local, gesturing towards the rusted barricade.
Local Bonds Against a Backdrop of Challenges
At Centre4, workers emphasise that support transcends addresses. “Your postcode doesn’t necessarily indicate your personal struggles,” explained director Tracey Good.
Regardless of being placed in the lowest 10% for income, employment, education, health and crime, the estate boasts a strong sense and feeling of community among its inhabitants. By contrast, Scartho is classified among the least deprived 10% nationally.
Echoes Elsewhere: An Estate in Kent
This pattern is repeated across the country. The Stanhope area in Ashford, Kent, a mid-century overspill estate, is in the most disadvantaged tenth of areas in England. It is closely bordered by large detached homes built in the 2000s that are in the wealthiest tenth for job prospects and living environment.
“They might have larger properties, but here there’s more community,” commented a long-term resident, 63. “You’ll probably find many people over there never even talk to each other.”
The economic gap is evident: an average three-bedroom house sells for about £275,000 on the estate, while on the other side equivalent homes go for about £410,000.
Locals speak of a palpable feeling of being overlooked. “Our neighbourhood gets ignored,” stated holistic health worker Susan Riley-Nevers. “Over here our amenities have gradually disappeared, and most of the issues we face here are to do with financial hardship.”
The increase in these ‘inequality borders’ paints a picture of an ever more divided England, where prosperity and need are often awkwardly in close proximity.
