A Rising ‘Posh-Poor Divide’: How Affluence and Hardship Are Found Side by Side in England.
Within a postwar estate known as ‘The Nunny’, inhabitants live in properties only several yards from their more affluent neighbours in the adjacent Scartho. One six-foot-tall wall literally divides the two areas in Grimsby, Lincolnshire, blocking off roads and walkways that once connected them.
“It’s the divide between rich and poor,” said a resident, 37. “It has been there for as long as I’ve known. I don’t think they’ll bring it down because I don’t think they’ll want to mix with us.”
A Stark Pattern Across the Country
Data from government figures reveals the extent of inequality often exists, sometimes across nothing more than a few metres of tarmac, a hedge row or a barrier. Years of budget cuts and lack of funding mean almost two-thirds of councils now have a neighbourhood classified as one of the most deprived in the nation.
The geographical widening of poverty has led to a sharp increase in the quantity of locations where deprived and affluent residents end up living side by side. In 2019, only 65 of the most deprived areas bordered one of the wealthiest. That figure increased to 119 in the most recent data.
A Wall That Divides More Than Land
At this Lincolnshire site, the divide is the biggest in the UK and starkly apparent. The wall is much more than a symbolic divide; it causes tangible problems for everyday life.
- School runs that should take 15-20 minutes become an sixty-minute detour.
- Reaching important services like grocery stores, schools and care homes is made more difficult.
- The area can attract antisocial behaviour, with reports of litter being dumped over the wall and other problems.
“You try to maintain a nice house and nice garden, and then you reside facing that,” noted one local, motioning at the corroded metal wall.
Local Bonds Amidst Challenges
Within Centre4, staff stress that support transcends postcodes. “Your postcode is not a reliable indicator of your personal struggles,” explained chief executive a community leader.
Regardless of ranking in the most deprived 10% for multiple deprivation indicators, Nunsthorpe retains a fierce loyalty and feeling of community among its residents. Meanwhile, the neighbouring area ranks among the least deprived 10% nationally.
Echoes Elsewhere: An Estate in Kent
This phenomenon is mirrored across the country. The Stanhope estate in Kent, a 1960s housing development, is in the 10% most deprived 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 quality of surroundings.
“They may possess larger properties, but here there’s a stronger community,” said a long-term resident, aged 63. “It’s likely a lot of people in the new builds never even talk to each other.”
The economic divide is clear: an typical family home sells for about £275,000 on the Stanhope estate, while on the other side comparable homes fetch about £410,000.
Locals describe a palpable sense of neglect. “Our neighbourhood is neglected,” said holistic health worker Susan Riley-Nevers. “In this area our amenities have slowly been taken away, and the majority of the community problems here are related to financial hardship.”
The rise in these ‘inequality borders’ presents a picture of an increasingly segregated society, where wealth and need are frequently awkwardly in close proximity.