What it's like to live in Caerphilly

Caerphilly is mostly an owner-occupier area. Across the council area, 67.5% of homes are owned, 18.8% are social rented and 13.3% are privately rented. The social rented share is a shade above the England figure of 17.1%, so there is a reasonable social housing base to swap within.

The largest landlord by far is Caerphilly County Borough Council with around 10,625 homes. United Welsh Housing Association has about 2,435 and Codi Group around 2,171, with smaller numbers from Wales and West and Cadwyn.

The age profile across the borough is broadly in line with England, though slightly older: 20.1% are 65 or over against 18.4% in England, and 25% are aged 25 to 44. In practice that means a settled mix of long-standing residents and younger families rather than a transient population.

Families have plenty of primary choice close in. Twyn Primary School is roughly 0.1 miles from the centre, with St Martin's School nearby, and two Welsh-medium primaries, Ysgol Gynradd Gymraeg y Castell and Ysgol Gynradd Gymraeg Caerffili, both under a mile. That makes Welsh-medium education a realistic option here rather than a long commute.

For secondary, Bedwas High School is about 1.6 miles away, and Campws y Gwyndy of Ysgol Gyfun Cwm Rhymni sits around half a mile from the centre. Always check catchments and places before you commit to a swap.

Outside school, there are parks within easy reach, Caerphilly Leisure Centre under a mile away, and community centres including Twyn Community Centre and the Caerphilly Miners' Centre for the Community. Across the wider council area, 18.4% of residents are under 16, close to the England average, so there are children about.

Caerphilly has better rail links than many towns its size. Caerphilly station is about 0.2 miles from the centre, with Aber, Energlyn and Churchill Park, Llanbradach and Lisvane and Thornhill all within three miles. That gives several options depending on which part of town you end up in.

Buses run from Caerphilly Interchange, close to the station, which makes changing between bus and train straightforward rather than a trek across town.

The town centre itself is walkable, with schools, shops, the library and parks all within a mile of each other. If you drive, you have the wider road network and out-of-town supermarkets to hand, plus Nantgarw a couple of miles away. If you do not drive, this is one of the easier Welsh towns to manage without a car, though you will still want to check how close your new street sits to a station or bus stop.

Green space is a strong point. Dafydd Williams Park is a couple of minutes from the centre, Morgan Jones Park a little further, and Aneurin Park and Bedwas Park are within a mile and a half. Good for prams, dogs and tiring children out.

For a night out, the centre has a decent spread: Brew Monster, Ffos Craft and Cocktail, the Kings Arms, The Courthouse and Caerphilly Municipal Club are all clustered within walking distance. Showcase Cinema Nantgarw is about 2.5 miles away for films.

If you like to keep active, there is choice beyond the leisure centre, with Mean Muscle Gymnasium, The EDGE, Team Rees Gym and Creazione Fitness Village all within a mile or so. Three libraries sit within three miles, in Caerphilly, Bedwas and Abertridwr, which matters if you want free indoor space in winter.

In the wider Caerphilly council area, 54% of adults are in work, a little below the England figure of 57.4%. Unemployment sits at 3.1%, slightly under England's 3.5%, and unemployment-related benefit claims were 3.6% of working-age people in September 2026, again below the England figure of 4%.

The town centre itself provides local jobs through shops, supermarkets, pubs and services, and the leisure centre and schools are sizeable local employers in their own right.

Plenty of people here commute. With the station and bus interchange both in the centre, travelling out for work is normal rather than unusual, and the road links south are used daily. If your job can be done from home, the library and the mix of cafes and community spaces give you somewhere to escape to.