The Rising ‘Wealth-Poverty Gap’: The Way Prosperity and Deprivation Are Found Cheek by Jowl in Across England.

Within Nunsthorpe, residents occupy properties just several yards from their more affluent neighbours in nearby Scartho village. A 1.8-metre-high barricade literally separates the two communities in Grimsby, Lincolnshire, blocking off roads and walkways that once 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 bring it down because I don’t think they’ll want to mix with us.”

A Stark National Picture

Analysis of official figures shows the extent of inequality can run, at times over nothing more than a short distance of tarmac, a hedge row or a barrier. Years of austerity and underinvestment have led to a situation where almost two-thirds of councils now have a locality classified as one of the poorest in the nation.

This spread of deprivation has coincided with a sharp increase in the quantity of places where deprived and well-off residents find themselves living side by side. In 2019, just 65 of the most deprived areas bordered one of the wealthiest. This number increased to 119 in the latest data.

A Barrier Which Divides More Than Land

At this Lincolnshire site, the gap is the biggest in the UK and starkly obvious. The barrier is much more than a metaphorical divide; it causes very real problems for everyday life.

• The school commute that ought to take 15-20 minutes become an hour-long detour.
• Access to important services like supermarkets, educational facilities and care homes is hindered.
• The site can attract 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 reside facing that,” noted one local, motioning at the rusted barricade.

Community Spirit Against a Backdrop of Challenges

At Centre4, workers emphasise that need does not recognise addresses. “Your postcode is not a reliable indicator of your level of challenge,” explained chief executive a community leader.

Regardless of being placed in the lowest 10% for income, employment, education, health and crime, Nunsthorpe retains a fierce loyalty and feeling of togetherness among its residents. By contrast, the neighbouring area is classified among the most prosperous 10% overall.

Echoes Elsewhere: Stanhope in Ashford

This pattern is repeated nationally. The Stanhope estate in Ashford, Kent, a 1960s housing development, is in the most disadvantaged tenth of neighbourhoods in the country. It is immediately adjacent by spacious houses built in the 2000s that are in the wealthiest tenth for job prospects and quality of surroundings.

“They might have bigger houses, but here there’s more community,” commented Phil Hockley, 63. “You’ll probably find many people over there never even talk to each other.”

The economic divide is clear: an typical three-bedroom house costs about £275,000 on the Stanhope estate, while on the other side equivalent homes go for about £410,000.

Locals describe a tangible feeling of being overlooked. “Our neighbourhood gets ignored,” stated resident Susan. “Over here our facilities have slowly been taken away, and the majority of the issues we face here are to do with financial hardship.”

The increase in these ‘inequality borders’ paints a picture of an ever more divided England, where prosperity and need are frequently awkwardly in close proximity.