🔗 Share this article The Growing ‘Posh-Poor Divide’: The Way Prosperity and Hardship Now Sit Side by Side in Across England. In a postwar estate known as ‘The Nunny’, residents live in homes only a few metres from their more affluent neighbours in nearby Scartho. One 1.8-metre-high barricade physically divides the two areas in Grimsby, Lincolnshire, blocking off roads and walkways that previously linked them. “This is the divide between rich and poor,” remarked 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 associate with us.” An Increasingly Common National Picture Analysis of official figures reveals how deep disparity often exists, at times across little more than a few metres of tarmac, a line of hedges or a barrier. Years of budget cuts and underinvestment have led to a situation where almost two-thirds of local authorities now contain a neighbourhood ranking as one of the most deprived in the nation. This spread of deprivation has coincided with a sharp increase in the number of locations where disadvantaged and well-off residents find themselves as immediate neighbours. In 2019, just 65 of the poorest neighbourhoods 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 gap is the most pronounced in the UK and starkly apparent. The barrier transcends being just a symbolic divide; it causes very real difficulties for daily routines. School runs that should take a quarter of an hour become an sixty-minute detour. Reaching key services like supermarkets, educational facilities and care homes is made more difficult. The site often sees antisocial behaviour, with reports of rubbish being dumped over the wall and other issues. “People strive to maintain a well-kept home and garden, and then you live opposite that,” said one resident, motioning at the corroded metal wall. Local Bonds Amidst Hardship At a local community centre, workers emphasise that support does not recognise addresses. “Where you live is not a reliable indicator of your personal struggles,” said chief executive a community leader. Despite ranking in the lowest 10% for income, employment, education, health and crime, Nunsthorpe retains a fierce loyalty and feeling of togetherness among its residents. Meanwhile, the neighbouring area ranks among the least deprived 10% overall. A Similar Story: Stanhope in Ashford This phenomenon is repeated across the country. The Stanhope estate 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 employment and living environment. “They may possess bigger houses, but here there’s a stronger community,” said a long-term resident, 63. “You’ll probably find many people over there don’t even speak to each other.” The economic divide is evident: an average family home costs about £275,000 on the estate, while on the other side comparable properties fetch about £410,000. Locals speak of a palpable feeling of neglect. “Our neighbourhood gets ignored,” stated resident Susan Riley-Nevers. “In this area our facilities have gradually disappeared, and the majority of the issues we face here are related to poverty.” The rise in these ‘inequality borders’ presents a portrait of an ever more segregated society, where wealth and deprivation are frequently awkwardly in close proximity.
In a postwar estate known as ‘The Nunny’, residents live in homes only a few metres from their more affluent neighbours in nearby Scartho. One 1.8-metre-high barricade physically divides the two areas in Grimsby, Lincolnshire, blocking off roads and walkways that previously linked them. “This is the divide between rich and poor,” remarked 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 associate with us.” An Increasingly Common National Picture Analysis of official figures reveals how deep disparity often exists, at times across little more than a few metres of tarmac, a line of hedges or a barrier. Years of budget cuts and underinvestment have led to a situation where almost two-thirds of local authorities now contain a neighbourhood ranking as one of the most deprived in the nation. This spread of deprivation has coincided with a sharp increase in the number of locations where disadvantaged and well-off residents find themselves as immediate neighbours. In 2019, just 65 of the poorest neighbourhoods 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 gap is the most pronounced in the UK and starkly apparent. The barrier transcends being just a symbolic divide; it causes very real difficulties for daily routines. School runs that should take a quarter of an hour become an sixty-minute detour. Reaching key services like supermarkets, educational facilities and care homes is made more difficult. The site often sees antisocial behaviour, with reports of rubbish being dumped over the wall and other issues. “People strive to maintain a well-kept home and garden, and then you live opposite that,” said one resident, motioning at the corroded metal wall. Local Bonds Amidst Hardship At a local community centre, workers emphasise that support does not recognise addresses. “Where you live is not a reliable indicator of your personal struggles,” said chief executive a community leader. Despite ranking in the lowest 10% for income, employment, education, health and crime, Nunsthorpe retains a fierce loyalty and feeling of togetherness among its residents. Meanwhile, the neighbouring area ranks among the least deprived 10% overall. A Similar Story: Stanhope in Ashford This phenomenon is repeated across the country. The Stanhope estate 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 employment and living environment. “They may possess bigger houses, but here there’s a stronger community,” said a long-term resident, 63. “You’ll probably find many people over there don’t even speak to each other.” The economic divide is evident: an average family home costs about £275,000 on the estate, while on the other side comparable properties fetch about £410,000. Locals speak of a palpable feeling of neglect. “Our neighbourhood gets ignored,” stated resident Susan Riley-Nevers. “In this area our facilities have gradually disappeared, and the majority of the issues we face here are related to poverty.” The rise in these ‘inequality borders’ presents a portrait of an ever more segregated society, where wealth and deprivation are frequently awkwardly in close proximity.