🔗 Share this article The Rising ‘Wealth-Poverty Gap’: The Way Affluence and Deprivation Now Sit Side by Side in Across England. Within Nunsthorpe, inhabitants live in properties only several yards from their more affluent counterparts in nearby Scartho village. One 1.8-metre-high wall literally separates the two areas in Grimsby, Lincolnshire, blocking off roads and walkways that once linked them. “This is the divide between rich and poor,” said Serenity Colley, aged 37. “It has been there for as long as I’ve known. I don’t think they’ll bring it down because I suspect they’ll want to associate with us.” An Increasingly Common National Picture Data from government figures reveals how deep disparity often exists, sometimes across nothing more than a short distance of asphalt, a hedge row or a wall. Decades of austerity and lack of funding have led to a situation where almost two-thirds of local authorities now have a neighbourhood ranking as one of the poorest in the country. The geographical widening of poverty has coincided with a significant increase in the quantity of locations where deprived and affluent people end up living side by side. In 2019, only 65 of the most deprived areas adjoined one of the least deprived. That figure increased to 119 in the most recent data. A Barrier Which Divides More Than Space In Grimsby, the divide is the biggest in the country and starkly obvious. The barrier is much more than a metaphorical division; it causes very real difficulties for everyday life. The school commute that should take 15-20 minutes become an sixty-minute detour. Access to important services like grocery stores, schools and care homes is hindered. The area can attract vandalism and loitering, with reports of rubbish being thrown over the wall and related issues. “People strive to maintain a nice house and nice garden, and then you reside facing that,” said one resident, motioning at the rusted barricade. Local Bonds Amidst Hardship Within a local community centre, staff emphasise that support does not recognise addresses. “Where you live doesn’t necessarily indicate your level of challenge,” explained chief executive a community leader. Despite being placed in the most deprived 10% for multiple deprivation indicators, Nunsthorpe retains a strong sense and sense of community among its residents. By contrast, the neighbouring area ranks among the least deprived 10% nationally. Echoes Elsewhere: Stanhope in Ashford This phenomenon is mirrored nationally. The Stanhope area in Kent, a 1960s overspill estate, is in the most disadvantaged tenth of areas in England. It is immediately adjacent by spacious houses built in the early 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 Phil Hockley, aged 63. “You’ll probably find many people over there don’t even speak to each other.” The financial 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 describe a tangible feeling of neglect. “Our neighbourhood gets ignored,” stated resident Susan Riley-Nevers. “In this area our amenities have slowly been taken away, and the majority of the issues we face here are to do with financial hardship.” The increase in these ‘deprivation divides’ presents a portrait of an increasingly segregated society, where prosperity and deprivation are often awkwardly close neighbours.
Within Nunsthorpe, inhabitants live in properties only several yards from their more affluent counterparts in nearby Scartho village. One 1.8-metre-high wall literally separates the two areas in Grimsby, Lincolnshire, blocking off roads and walkways that once linked them. “This is the divide between rich and poor,” said Serenity Colley, aged 37. “It has been there for as long as I’ve known. I don’t think they’ll bring it down because I suspect they’ll want to associate with us.” An Increasingly Common National Picture Data from government figures reveals how deep disparity often exists, sometimes across nothing more than a short distance of asphalt, a hedge row or a wall. Decades of austerity and lack of funding have led to a situation where almost two-thirds of local authorities now have a neighbourhood ranking as one of the poorest in the country. The geographical widening of poverty has coincided with a significant increase in the quantity of locations where deprived and affluent people end up living side by side. In 2019, only 65 of the most deprived areas adjoined one of the least deprived. That figure increased to 119 in the most recent data. A Barrier Which Divides More Than Space In Grimsby, the divide is the biggest in the country and starkly obvious. The barrier is much more than a metaphorical division; it causes very real difficulties for everyday life. The school commute that should take 15-20 minutes become an sixty-minute detour. Access to important services like grocery stores, schools and care homes is hindered. The area can attract vandalism and loitering, with reports of rubbish being thrown over the wall and related issues. “People strive to maintain a nice house and nice garden, and then you reside facing that,” said one resident, motioning at the rusted barricade. Local Bonds Amidst Hardship Within a local community centre, staff emphasise that support does not recognise addresses. “Where you live doesn’t necessarily indicate your level of challenge,” explained chief executive a community leader. Despite being placed in the most deprived 10% for multiple deprivation indicators, Nunsthorpe retains a strong sense and sense of community among its residents. By contrast, the neighbouring area ranks among the least deprived 10% nationally. Echoes Elsewhere: Stanhope in Ashford This phenomenon is mirrored nationally. The Stanhope area in Kent, a 1960s overspill estate, is in the most disadvantaged tenth of areas in England. It is immediately adjacent by spacious houses built in the early 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 Phil Hockley, aged 63. “You’ll probably find many people over there don’t even speak to each other.” The financial 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 describe a tangible feeling of neglect. “Our neighbourhood gets ignored,” stated resident Susan Riley-Nevers. “In this area our amenities have slowly been taken away, and the majority of the issues we face here are to do with financial hardship.” The increase in these ‘deprivation divides’ presents a portrait of an increasingly segregated society, where prosperity and deprivation are often awkwardly close neighbours.