The Growing ‘Posh-Poor Divide’: The Way Prosperity and Hardship Are Found Cheek by Jowl in Across England.

Within Nunsthorpe, inhabitants occupy homes only a few metres from their wealthier neighbours in nearby Scartho. One six-foot-tall wall physically divides the two areas in the town of Grimsby, blocking off paths and streets that previously linked them.

“It’s the divide between rich and poor,” said Serenity Colley, 37. “It has been there since I’ve known. I don’t think they’ll bring it down because I suspect they’ll want to associate with us.”

A Stark Pattern Across the Country

Data from official statistics reveals the extent of inequality often exists, at times across nothing more than a short distance of tarmac, a line of hedges or a wall. Years of austerity and underinvestment mean almost two-thirds of local authorities now have a neighbourhood ranking as one of the most deprived in the country.

This spread of deprivation has coincided with a sharp increase in the number of locations where deprived and affluent residents find themselves living side by side. In 2019, only 65 of the poorest areas adjoined one of the wealthiest. This number rose to 119 in the most recent data.

A Barrier Which Does More Than Separate Space

At this Lincolnshire site, the divide is the biggest in the UK and painfully obvious. The barrier is much more than a metaphorical divide; it creates tangible problems for everyday life.

• School runs that should take a quarter of an hour become an hour-long journey.
• Access to key amenities like grocery stores, educational facilities and employment centres is made more difficult.
• The area can attract antisocial behaviour, with instances of litter being thrown over the wall and related problems.

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

Local Bonds Against a Backdrop of Challenges

Within Centre4, workers emphasise that support transcends postcodes. “Your postcode doesn’t necessarily indicate your level of challenge,” said director a community leader.

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

Echoes Elsewhere: Stanhope in Ashford

This pattern is mirrored across the country. The Stanhope area in Ashford, Kent, a mid-century overspill estate, is in the most disadvantaged tenth of neighbourhoods in England. It is immediately adjacent by spacious houses 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 more community,” said Phil Hockley, aged 63. “You’ll probably find a lot of 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 on the other side comparable homes fetch about £410,000.

Residents speak of a tangible sense of being overlooked. “Our neighbourhood is neglected,” stated holistic health worker Susan Riley-Nevers. “In this area our amenities have gradually disappeared, and the majority of the issues we face here are related to poverty.”

The increase in these ‘deprivation divides’ paints a picture of an increasingly divided society, where prosperity and deprivation are often awkwardly close neighbours.