A Growing ‘Wealth-Poverty Gap’: The Way Prosperity and Deprivation Now Sit Cheek by Jowl in England.
In a postwar estate known as ‘The Nunny’, residents occupy properties just a few metres from their wealthier neighbours in nearby Scartho village. One 1.8-metre-high wall literally separates the two areas in Grimsby, Lincolnshire, blocking off roads and walkways that previously connected them.
“It’s the posh-poor divide,” remarked a resident, 37. “It’s been like this for as long as I’ve known. I doubt they’ll take it down because I don’t think they’ll want to associate with us.”
An Increasingly Common National Picture
Analysis of government statistics shows the extent of inequality can run, at times over little more than a few metres of tarmac, a line of hedges or a barrier. Decades of budget cuts and lack of funding have led to a situation where almost two-thirds of councils now contain a neighbourhood classified as one of the most deprived in the country.
This spread of poverty has coincided with a sharp rise in the number of locations where deprived and well-off residents find themselves living side by side. In 2019, just 65 of the most deprived areas adjoined one of the wealthiest. This number rose to 119 in the most recent data.
A Wall That Does More Than Separate Land
In Grimsby, the divide is the biggest in the country and starkly obvious. The barrier transcends being just a symbolic division; it causes very real problems for everyday life.
- School runs that ought to take 15-20 minutes turn into an hour-long journey.
- Reaching key amenities like grocery stores, 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 have a well-kept home and garden, and then you live opposite that,” said one local, motioning at the corroded metal wall.
Local Bonds Against a Backdrop of Challenges
At Centre4, workers emphasise that need does not recognise postcodes. “Where you live doesn’t necessarily indicate your personal struggles,” said chief executive Tracey Good.
Regardless of being placed in the most deprived 10% for multiple deprivation indicators, the estate retains a strong sense and feeling of community among its inhabitants. Meanwhile, Scartho ranks among the least deprived 10% nationally.
Echoes Elsewhere: Stanhope in Ashford
This phenomenon is mirrored nationally. The Stanhope area in Kent, a mid-century housing development, is in the most disadvantaged tenth of neighbourhoods in England. It is closely bordered by large houses built in the early 2000s that sit in the top 10% for employment and living environment.
“They might have bigger houses, but here there’s a stronger community,” said a long-term resident, 63. “It’s likely a lot of people over there never even talk to each other.”
The financial divide is clear: an typical three-bedroom house sells for about £275,000 on the Stanhope estate, while across the divide equivalent properties go for about £410,000.
Residents describe a tangible feeling of being overlooked. “This part of the community gets ignored,” stated resident Susan. “In this area our amenities have slowly been taken away, and the majority of the issues we face here are to do with poverty.”
The increase in these ‘deprivation divides’ presents a picture of an ever more segregated England, where wealth and need are frequently awkwardly in close proximity.
