🔗 Share this article A Rising ‘Posh-Poor Divide’: The Way Prosperity and Deprivation Are Found Side by Side in Across England. Within Nunsthorpe, inhabitants live in properties only several yards from their wealthier neighbours in nearby Scartho. A 1.8-metre-high wall literally divides the two communities in Grimsby, Lincolnshire, blocking off roads and walkways that previously connected them. “This is the posh-poor divide,” 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 suspect they’ll want to mix with us.” An Increasingly Common Pattern Across the Country Analysis of official figures shows the extent of disparity can run, sometimes across nothing more than a few metres of asphalt, a hedge row or a wall. Decades of austerity and underinvestment mean almost two-thirds of councils now have a locality classified as one of the most deprived in the country. The spread of poverty has coincided with a significant rise in the number of places where deprived and well-off people end up as immediate neighbours. In 2019, just 65 of the poorest areas adjoined one of the least deprived. This number rose to 119 in the most recent data. A Wall That Does More Than Separate Land In Grimsby, the divide is the most pronounced in the country and painfully obvious. The wall is much more than a symbolic division; it creates very real difficulties for daily routines. The school commute that ought to take a quarter of an hour become an hour-long detour. Reaching important services like grocery stores, educational facilities and care homes is made more difficult. The area often sees antisocial behaviour, with instances of litter being thrown over the wall and related problems. “You try to have a nice house and nice garden, and then you reside facing that,” said one resident, gesturing towards the rusted barricade. Community Spirit Amidst Challenges At Centre4, workers emphasise that support does not recognise addresses. “Where you live is not a reliable indicator of your level of challenge,” said chief executive Tracey Good. Despite being placed in the lowest 10% for multiple deprivation indicators, Nunsthorpe retains a fierce loyalty and sense of community among its inhabitants. By contrast, Scartho ranks among the most prosperous 10% nationally. Echoes Elsewhere: An Estate in Kent This pattern is mirrored nationally. The Stanhope area in Ashford, Kent, a mid-century overspill estate, is in the 10% most deprived of neighbourhoods in England. It is immediately adjacent by large houses built in the early 2000s that are in the wealthiest tenth for employment and quality of surroundings. “They might have larger properties, but here there’s more community,” commented a long-term resident, 63. “It’s likely many people in the new builds don’t even speak to each other.” The economic divide is evident: an typical family home costs about £275,000 on the Stanhope estate, while across the divide comparable homes fetch about £410,000. Locals speak of a palpable feeling of being overlooked. “This part of the community gets ignored,” stated resident Susan Riley-Nevers. “Over here our amenities have gradually disappeared, and the majority of the community problems here are to do with financial hardship.” The rise in these ‘inequality borders’ paints a portrait of an increasingly segregated England, where prosperity and deprivation are frequently awkwardly close neighbours.
Within Nunsthorpe, inhabitants live in properties only several yards from their wealthier neighbours in nearby Scartho. A 1.8-metre-high wall literally divides the two communities in Grimsby, Lincolnshire, blocking off roads and walkways that previously connected them. “This is the posh-poor divide,” 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 suspect they’ll want to mix with us.” An Increasingly Common Pattern Across the Country Analysis of official figures shows the extent of disparity can run, sometimes across nothing more than a few metres of asphalt, a hedge row or a wall. Decades of austerity and underinvestment mean almost two-thirds of councils now have a locality classified as one of the most deprived in the country. The spread of poverty has coincided with a significant rise in the number of places where deprived and well-off people end up as immediate neighbours. In 2019, just 65 of the poorest areas adjoined one of the least deprived. This number rose to 119 in the most recent data. A Wall That Does More Than Separate Land In Grimsby, the divide is the most pronounced in the country and painfully obvious. The wall is much more than a symbolic division; it creates very real difficulties for daily routines. The school commute that ought to take a quarter of an hour become an hour-long detour. Reaching important services like grocery stores, educational facilities and care homes is made more difficult. The area often sees antisocial behaviour, with instances of litter being thrown over the wall and related problems. “You try to have a nice house and nice garden, and then you reside facing that,” said one resident, gesturing towards the rusted barricade. Community Spirit Amidst Challenges At Centre4, workers emphasise that support does not recognise addresses. “Where you live is not a reliable indicator of your level of challenge,” said chief executive Tracey Good. Despite being placed in the lowest 10% for multiple deprivation indicators, Nunsthorpe retains a fierce loyalty and sense of community among its inhabitants. By contrast, Scartho ranks among the most prosperous 10% nationally. Echoes Elsewhere: An Estate in Kent This pattern is mirrored nationally. The Stanhope area in Ashford, Kent, a mid-century overspill estate, is in the 10% most deprived of neighbourhoods in England. It is immediately adjacent by large houses built in the early 2000s that are in the wealthiest tenth for employment and quality of surroundings. “They might have larger properties, but here there’s more community,” commented a long-term resident, 63. “It’s likely many people in the new builds don’t even speak to each other.” The economic divide is evident: an typical family home costs about £275,000 on the Stanhope estate, while across the divide comparable homes fetch about £410,000. Locals speak of a palpable feeling of being overlooked. “This part of the community gets ignored,” stated resident Susan Riley-Nevers. “Over here our amenities have gradually disappeared, and the majority of the community problems here are to do with financial hardship.” The rise in these ‘inequality borders’ paints a portrait of an increasingly segregated England, where prosperity and deprivation are frequently awkwardly close neighbours.