A Rising ‘Wealth-Poverty Gap’: How Affluence and Hardship Are Found Cheek by Jowl in Across England.
In Nunsthorpe, inhabitants occupy homes only a few metres from their wealthier counterparts in nearby Scartho village. A six-foot-tall barricade physically divides the two communities in Grimsby, Lincolnshire, blocking off roads and walkways that once connected them.
“It’s the divide between rich and poor,” remarked Serenity Colley, aged 37. “It’s been like this since I’ve known. I doubt they’ll bring it down because I suspect they’ll want to mix with us.”
An Increasingly Common Pattern Across the Country
Data from official figures reveals how deep disparity often exists, at times across little more than a short distance of tarmac, a line of hedges or a wall. Decades of budget cuts and underinvestment have led to a situation where a majority of local authorities now have a locality ranking as one of the most deprived in the country.
This geographical widening of poverty has coincided with a significant increase in the quantity of locations where disadvantaged and affluent residents end up as immediate neighbours. Just a few years ago, only 65 of the most deprived areas adjoined one of the least deprived. This number rose to 119 in the latest data.
A Barrier Which Does More Than Separate Land
At this Lincolnshire site, the gap is the biggest in the country and starkly apparent. The barrier is much more than a metaphorical divide; it creates very real problems for daily routines.
- School runs that ought to take a quarter of an hour become an hour-long journey.
- Reaching important amenities like grocery stores, schools and care homes is made more difficult.
- The area often sees vandalism and loitering, with reports of rubbish being dumped over the wall and other issues.
“People strive to maintain a well-kept home and garden, and then you live opposite that,” noted one resident, motioning at the corroded barricade.
Community Spirit Amidst Challenges
At Centre4, staff emphasise that support does not recognise addresses. “Your postcode is not a reliable indicator of your level of challenge,” said chief executive Tracey Good.
Regardless of being placed in the lowest 10% for income, employment, education, health and crime, Nunsthorpe boasts a fierce loyalty and feeling of community among its inhabitants. By contrast, the neighbouring area ranks among the least deprived 10% nationally.
A Similar Story: An Estate in Kent
This phenomenon is repeated across the country. The Stanhope estate in Ashford, Kent, a 1960s overspill estate, is in the 10% most deprived of areas in the country. It is closely bordered by large houses built in the early 2000s that are in the top 10% for employment and quality of surroundings.
“They might have bigger houses, but here there’s a stronger community,” commented Phil Hockley, 63. “It’s likely a lot of 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 equivalent properties go for about £410,000.
Locals describe a tangible feeling of being overlooked. “Our neighbourhood gets ignored,” said holistic health worker Susan Riley-Nevers. “In this area our amenities have gradually disappeared, and most of the community problems here are to do with financial hardship.”
The increase in these ‘deprivation divides’ presents a picture of an increasingly divided England, where wealth and deprivation are often awkwardly in close proximity.
