The Growing ‘Wealth-Poverty Gap’: How Affluence and Hardship Now Sit Cheek by Jowl in Across England.

Within a postwar estate known as ‘The Nunny’, residents occupy properties just a few metres from their wealthier neighbours in nearby Scartho. A 1.8-metre-high barricade physically separates the two communities in the town of Grimsby, sealing off roads and walkways that previously linked them.

“This is the posh-poor divide,” said Serenity Colley, aged 37. “It’s been like this for as long as I’ve known. I doubt they’ll bring it down because I don’t think they’ll want to associate with us.”

A Stark National Picture

Analysis of government statistics shows the extent of inequality can run, sometimes across little more than a short distance of asphalt, a line of hedges or a wall. Decades of budget cuts and underinvestment mean almost two-thirds of local authorities now have a neighbourhood classified as one of the most deprived in the nation.

This spread of deprivation has led to a significant rise in the number of locations where disadvantaged and well-off people find themselves living side by side. In 2019, just 65 of the most deprived areas adjoined one of the least deprived. This number rose to 119 in the most recent data.

A Barrier Which Divides More Than Space

In Grimsby, the divide is the most pronounced in the UK and painfully apparent. The barrier transcends being just a metaphorical divide; it causes tangible difficulties for daily routines.

• The school commute that should take 15-20 minutes become an sixty-minute journey.
• Reaching key services like grocery stores, educational facilities and employment centres is hindered.
• The site often sees antisocial behaviour, with reports of rubbish being dumped over the wall and other problems.

“People strive to maintain a well-kept home and garden, and then you live opposite that,” said one local, motioning at the rusted metal wall.

Local Bonds Amidst Challenges

Within a local community centre, workers stress that need does not recognise addresses. “Where you live is not a reliable indicator of your personal struggles,” explained chief executive Tracey Good.

Despite ranking in the lowest 10% for income, employment, education, health and crime, Nunsthorpe boasts a strong sense and sense of togetherness among its residents. By contrast, Scartho ranks among the most prosperous 10% nationally.

A Similar Story: An Estate in Kent

This pattern is repeated nationally. The Stanhope area in Ashford, Kent, a mid-century overspill estate, is in the 10% most deprived of areas in the country. It is closely bordered by large houses built in the early 2000s that are in the top 10% for employment and quality of surroundings.

“They might have larger properties, but here there’s more community,” commented Phil Hockley, 63. “It’s likely many people over there never even talk to each other.”

The economic gap is clear: an typical family home sells for about £275,000 on the estate, while on the other side equivalent properties go for about £410,000.

Residents speak of a tangible feeling of neglect. “This part of the community is neglected,” said holistic health worker Susan Riley-Nevers. “Over here our facilities have gradually disappeared, and most of the issues we face here are to do with financial hardship.”

The rise in these ‘deprivation divides’ paints a portrait of an increasingly segregated England, where prosperity and deprivation are frequently uncomfortably in close proximity.