🔗 Share this article A Growing ‘Posh-Poor Divide’: The Way Prosperity and Hardship Are Found Side by Side in England. Within a postwar estate known as ‘The Nunny’, inhabitants live in homes only a few metres from their wealthier counterparts in the adjacent Scartho. A 1.8-metre-high barricade literally separates the two communities in the town of Grimsby, sealing off paths and streets that once connected them. “It’s the posh-poor divide,” said Serenity Colley, aged 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 mix with us.” An Increasingly Common Pattern Across the Country Data from official statistics shows the extent of disparity often exists, sometimes across nothing more than a few metres of tarmac, a line of hedges or a barrier. Years of budget cuts and underinvestment have led to a situation where almost two-thirds of local authorities now contain a neighbourhood ranking as one of the most deprived in the country. The spread of deprivation has coincided with a significant increase in the quantity of locations where deprived and affluent people find themselves living side by side. In 2019, just 65 of the most deprived areas adjoined 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 divide is the biggest in the UK and painfully obvious. The wall is much more than a symbolic divide; it causes tangible difficulties for everyday life. The school commute that should take a quarter of an hour become an hour-long detour. Reaching important amenities like supermarkets, schools and employment centres is made more difficult. The area often sees antisocial behaviour, with reports 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,” said one resident, motioning at the corroded barricade. Local Bonds Amidst Hardship At a local community centre, workers stress that support transcends postcodes. “Your postcode is not a reliable indicator of your personal struggles,” explained chief executive Tracey Good. Regardless of being placed in the lowest 10% for income, employment, education, health and crime, the estate retains a fierce loyalty and sense of community among its residents. By contrast, Scartho is classified among the least deprived 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 areas in England. It is closely bordered by spacious detached homes built in the 2000s that sit in the top 10% for job prospects and quality of surroundings. “They might have larger properties, but here there’s more community,” said Phil Hockley, 63. “You’ll probably find a lot of people over there don’t even speak 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 speak of a palpable feeling of being overlooked. “This part of the community is neglected,” said holistic health worker Susan Riley-Nevers. “Over here our amenities have slowly been taken away, and most of the community problems here are related to poverty.” The rise in these ‘deprivation divides’ presents a picture of an increasingly divided England, where wealth and deprivation are frequently uncomfortably in close proximity.
Within a postwar estate known as ‘The Nunny’, inhabitants live in homes only a few metres from their wealthier counterparts in the adjacent Scartho. A 1.8-metre-high barricade literally separates the two communities in the town of Grimsby, sealing off paths and streets that once connected them. “It’s the posh-poor divide,” said Serenity Colley, aged 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 mix with us.” An Increasingly Common Pattern Across the Country Data from official statistics shows the extent of disparity often exists, sometimes across nothing more than a few metres of tarmac, a line of hedges or a barrier. Years of budget cuts and underinvestment have led to a situation where almost two-thirds of local authorities now contain a neighbourhood ranking as one of the most deprived in the country. The spread of deprivation has coincided with a significant increase in the quantity of locations where deprived and affluent people find themselves living side by side. In 2019, just 65 of the most deprived areas adjoined 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 divide is the biggest in the UK and painfully obvious. The wall is much more than a symbolic divide; it causes tangible difficulties for everyday life. The school commute that should take a quarter of an hour become an hour-long detour. Reaching important amenities like supermarkets, schools and employment centres is made more difficult. The area often sees antisocial behaviour, with reports 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,” said one resident, motioning at the corroded barricade. Local Bonds Amidst Hardship At a local community centre, workers stress that support transcends postcodes. “Your postcode is not a reliable indicator of your personal struggles,” explained chief executive Tracey Good. Regardless of being placed in the lowest 10% for income, employment, education, health and crime, the estate retains a fierce loyalty and sense of community among its residents. By contrast, Scartho is classified among the least deprived 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 areas in England. It is closely bordered by spacious detached homes built in the 2000s that sit in the top 10% for job prospects and quality of surroundings. “They might have larger properties, but here there’s more community,” said Phil Hockley, 63. “You’ll probably find a lot of people over there don’t even speak 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 speak of a palpable feeling of being overlooked. “This part of the community is neglected,” said holistic health worker Susan Riley-Nevers. “Over here our amenities have slowly been taken away, and most of the community problems here are related to poverty.” The rise in these ‘deprivation divides’ presents a picture of an increasingly divided England, where wealth and deprivation are frequently uncomfortably in close proximity.