A Rising ‘Posh-Poor Divide’: How Affluence and Hardship Now Sit Side by Side in England.

In Nunsthorpe, inhabitants live in properties only several yards from their wealthier neighbours in the adjacent Scartho village. One 1.8-metre-high barricade literally separates the two communities in Grimsby, Lincolnshire, blocking off paths and streets that once connected them.

“It’s the posh-poor divide,” remarked a resident, 37. “It’s been like this 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 National Picture

Data from government statistics reveals the extent of inequality can run, sometimes across little more than a few metres of asphalt, a line of hedges or a barrier. Decades of budget cuts and underinvestment have led to a situation where almost two-thirds of local authorities now contain a locality ranking as one of the most deprived in the nation.

This geographical widening of deprivation has led to a significant increase in the quantity of locations where deprived and affluent people find themselves as immediate neighbours. In 2019, only 65 of the most deprived areas adjoined one of the wealthiest. This number rose to 119 in the most recent data.

A Barrier Which Divides More Than Space

At this Lincolnshire site, the divide is the biggest in the country and painfully obvious. The barrier transcends being just a metaphorical division; it causes very real problems for everyday life.

• The school commute that ought to take a quarter of an hour turn into an hour-long journey.
• Access to important services like grocery stores, schools and employment centres is made more difficult.
• The area often sees antisocial behaviour, with reports of litter being dumped over the wall and related problems.

“You try to maintain a nice house and nice garden, and then you live opposite that,” said one resident, gesturing towards the rusted barricade.

Local Bonds Amidst Hardship

At a local community centre, workers emphasise 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 income, employment, education, health and crime, the estate boasts a strong sense and feeling of togetherness among its inhabitants. Meanwhile, the neighbouring area is classified among the most prosperous 10% nationally.

Echoes Elsewhere: An Estate in Kent

This pattern is mirrored across the country. The Stanhope estate in Ashford, Kent, a mid-century overspill estate, is in the 10% most deprived of neighbourhoods in the country. It is closely bordered by large detached homes built in the 2000s that sit in the wealthiest tenth for employment and quality of surroundings.

“They may possess larger properties, but here there’s more community,” commented a long-term resident, aged 63. “It’s likely a lot of people over there don’t even speak to each other.”

The financial divide is evident: an average family home costs about £275,000 on the Stanhope estate, while on the other side comparable properties fetch about £410,000.

Residents speak of a tangible feeling of neglect. “This part of the community 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 to do with poverty.”

The increase in these ‘inequality borders’ presents a picture of an increasingly divided England, where prosperity and need are often uncomfortably in close proximity.