The Rising ‘Posh-Poor Divide’: How Prosperity and Hardship Now Sit Side by Side in England.
Within a postwar estate known as ‘The Nunny’, residents occupy properties just a few metres from their wealthier neighbours in nearby Scartho village. One 1.8-metre-high wall physically divides the two areas in Grimsby, Lincolnshire, blocking off roads and walkways that once connected them.
“This is the posh-poor divide,” said a resident, aged 37. “It has been there since I’ve known. I don’t think they’ll bring it down because I don’t think they’ll want to mix with us.”
An Increasingly Common National Picture
Analysis of government figures shows how deep inequality can run, sometimes over little more than a few metres of asphalt, a hedge row or a barrier. Decades of austerity and lack of funding have led to a situation where a majority of councils now have a locality classified as one of the poorest in the country.
The spread of deprivation has led to a significant rise in the quantity of locations where deprived and well-off residents find themselves as immediate neighbours. In 2019, only 65 of the most deprived neighbourhoods adjoined one of the least deprived. That figure increased to 119 in the most recent data.
A Barrier Which Divides More Than Space
At this Lincolnshire site, the gap is the most pronounced in the UK and painfully apparent. The wall is much more than a metaphorical division; it causes tangible difficulties for everyday life.
- School runs that should take 15-20 minutes become an sixty-minute journey.
- Reaching key amenities like supermarkets, educational facilities and employment centres is made more difficult.
- The area often sees vandalism and loitering, with instances of rubbish being thrown over the wall and related problems.
“People strive to have a well-kept home and garden, and then you reside facing that,” noted one resident, motioning at the rusted metal wall.
Local Bonds Against a Backdrop of Hardship
At Centre4, workers emphasise that need transcends postcodes. “Where you live doesn’t necessarily indicate your level of challenge,” explained director a community leader.
Despite being placed in the most deprived 10% for income, employment, education, health and crime, the estate retains a strong sense and feeling of community among its inhabitants. Meanwhile, Scartho is classified among the most prosperous 10% overall.
A Similar Story: Stanhope in Ashford
This pattern is repeated nationally. The Stanhope estate in Ashford, Kent, a 1960s overspill estate, is in the most disadvantaged tenth of areas in the country. It is immediately adjacent by large houses built in the 2000s that sit in the wealthiest tenth for job prospects and living environment.
“They may possess larger properties, but here there’s more community,” commented a long-term resident, 63. “You’ll probably find a lot of people in the new builds never even talk to each other.”
The financial divide is evident: an typical three-bedroom house sells for about £275,000 on the estate, while across the divide equivalent homes fetch about £410,000.
Residents speak of a palpable sense of being overlooked. “Our neighbourhood is neglected,” stated resident Susan Riley-Nevers. “In this area our amenities have gradually disappeared, and the majority of the issues we face here are to do with financial hardship.”
The rise in these ‘inequality borders’ paints a picture of an increasingly segregated society, where wealth and need are frequently uncomfortably in close proximity.
