In Nunsthorpe, residents live in homes just several yards from their wealthier counterparts in the adjacent Scartho village. A six-foot-tall wall physically divides the two areas in the town of Grimsby, blocking off paths and streets that once connected them.
“It’s the posh-poor divide,” said Serenity Colley, 37. “It’s been like this since I’ve known. I doubt they’ll take it down because I suspect they’ll want to associate with us.”
Analysis of official statistics reveals the extent of disparity can run, sometimes over little more than a short distance of tarmac, a line of hedges or a wall. Decades of budget cuts and underinvestment mean almost two-thirds of councils now contain a locality classified as one of the poorest in the nation.
The geographical widening of deprivation has coincided with a significant rise in the number of locations where disadvantaged and affluent people find themselves living side by side. In 2019, only 65 of the most deprived areas bordered one of the least deprived. This number rose to 119 in the latest data.
In Grimsby, the divide is the biggest in the UK and painfully apparent. The barrier is much more than a metaphorical divide; it causes very real difficulties for everyday life.
“You try to maintain a well-kept home and garden, and then you live opposite that,” said one resident, gesturing towards the rusted metal wall.
Within a local community centre, workers emphasise that need does not recognise addresses. “Where you live is not a reliable indicator of your level of challenge,” said director Tracey Good.
Regardless of being placed in the most deprived 10% for multiple deprivation indicators, the estate retains a fierce loyalty and sense of togetherness among its inhabitants. Meanwhile, the neighbouring area is classified among the most prosperous 10% nationally.
This pattern is mirrored nationally. The Stanhope estate in Kent, a mid-century housing development, is in the 10% most deprived of areas in the country. It is closely bordered by large houses built in the 2000s that sit in the top 10% for job prospects and quality of surroundings.
“They may possess bigger houses, but here there’s more community,” commented a long-term resident, 63. “You’ll probably find a lot of people over there never even talk to each other.”
The economic gap is evident: an average three-bedroom house costs about £275,000 on the estate, while on the other side equivalent properties go for about £410,000.
Locals speak of a tangible feeling of neglect. “Our neighbourhood gets ignored,” stated holistic health worker Susan. “In this area our facilities have slowly been taken away, and the majority of the community problems here are to do with poverty.”
The increase in these ‘deprivation divides’ presents a portrait of an ever more segregated society, where wealth and need are often uncomfortably in close proximity.
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