The Rising ‘Wealth-Poverty Gap’: The Way Prosperity and Hardship Are Found Side by Side in England.

In a postwar estate known as ‘The Nunny’, inhabitants occupy properties only a few metres from their wealthier neighbours in the adjacent Scartho. One 1.8-metre-high wall literally divides the two communities in Grimsby, Lincolnshire, sealing off roads and walkways that once linked them.

“This is the posh-poor divide,” said Serenity Colley, aged 37. “It has been there for as long as I’ve known. I don’t think they’ll take it down because I don’t think they’ll want to mix with us.”

An Increasingly Common National Picture

Data from government figures reveals how deep inequality often exists, at times across little more than a few metres of asphalt, a hedge row or a wall. Years of austerity and lack of funding mean a majority of local authorities now have a locality classified as one of the most deprived in the nation.

This geographical widening of poverty has coincided with a sharp increase in the quantity of locations where disadvantaged and well-off people find themselves as immediate neighbours. In 2019, only 65 of the most deprived neighbourhoods adjoined one of the least deprived. That figure rose to 119 in the latest data.

A Barrier Which Does More Than Separate Land

At this Lincolnshire site, the divide is the most pronounced in the country and painfully apparent. The wall transcends being just a metaphorical division; it creates tangible difficulties for daily routines.

• School runs that should take a quarter of an hour turn into an hour-long detour.
• Access to key amenities like supermarkets, educational facilities and care homes is made more difficult.
• The site often sees antisocial behaviour, with reports of rubbish being thrown over the wall and related issues.

“You try to have a well-kept home and garden, and then you live opposite that,” said one resident, motioning at the rusted metal wall.

Local Bonds Against a Backdrop of Hardship

At a local community centre, staff stress that support transcends postcodes. “Where you live is not a reliable indicator of your personal struggles,” explained chief executive Tracey Good.

Despite ranking in the most deprived 10% for income, employment, education, health and crime, Nunsthorpe boasts a fierce loyalty and sense of togetherness among its inhabitants. By contrast, Scartho ranks among the least deprived 10% overall.

A Similar Story: Stanhope in Ashford

This phenomenon is mirrored across the country. The Stanhope area in Ashford, Kent, a mid-century overspill estate, is in the most disadvantaged tenth of areas in the country. It is immediately adjacent by spacious houses built in the 2000s that are in the wealthiest tenth for job prospects and living environment.

“They may possess larger properties, but here there’s a stronger community,” said Phil Hockley, 63. “It’s likely many people over there never even talk to each other.”

The financial divide is clear: an average family home costs about £275,000 on the estate, while across the divide comparable properties fetch about £410,000.

Locals speak of a palpable feeling of neglect. “Our neighbourhood is neglected,” said resident Susan. “In this area our facilities have slowly been taken away, and the majority of the issues we face here are related to poverty.”

The increase in these ‘deprivation divides’ paints a portrait of an ever more divided society, where prosperity and need are frequently uncomfortably in close proximity.