Gilfach is the small district that lies between

Bargoed Bargoed ( cy, Bargod) is a town and community in the Rhymney Valley, Wales, one of the South Wales Valleys. It lies on the Rhymney River in the county borough of Caerphilly. It straddles the ancient boundary of Glamorgan and Monmouthshire, with ...

and

Pengam Pengam is a former coal village and community in the Rhymney Valley, Caerphilly county borough, in Wales. It is also a community, containing itself and the nearby village of Fleur de Lys, and at the 2001 census it has a population of 3,842, risin ...

, situated in the

Caerphilly county borough Caerphilly County Borough ( cy, Bwrdeistref Sirol Caerffili) is a county borough in the south-east of Wales. It is governed by Caerphilly County Borough Council. Its main and largest town is Caerphilly. Other towns in the county borough are Bed ...

, seven miles north of

Caerphilly Caerphilly (, ; cy, Caerffili, ) is a town and community in Wales. It is situated at the southern end of the Rhymney Valley. It is north of Cardiff and northwest of Newport. It is the largest town in Caerphilly County Borough, and lies wit ...

, within the historic boundaries of

Glamorgan , HQ = Cardiff , Government = Glamorgan County Council (1889–1974) , Origin= , Code = GLA , CodeName = Chapman code , Replace = * West Glamorgan * Mid Glamorgan * South Glamorgan , Motto ...

, Wales. The

ward had a population of 2,062 at the 2011 census. The name Gilfach is derived from the

Welsh Welsh may refer to: Related to Wales * Welsh, referring or related to Wales * Welsh language, a Brittonic Celtic language spoken in Wales * Welsh people People * Welsh (surname) * Sometimes used as a synonym for the ancient Britons (Celtic peop ...

words ''cil'' (nook) and ''bach'' (small). Gilfach is the smallest of the three

Electoral ward A ward is a local authority area, typically used for electoral purposes. In some countries, wards are usually named after neighbourhoods, thoroughfares, parishes, landmarks, geographical features and in some cases historical figures connected to t ...

s that make up Greater Bargoed (along with Bargoed and

Aberbargoed Aberbargoed is a town in the Caerphilly County Borough, County Borough of Caerphilly, Wales. Aberbargoed once contained the largest ever colliery waste tip in Europe, although this has now been reclaimed and turned into a country park. The town i ...

). Gilfach has many institutions, such as the Welfare Hall, Workingmen's Club,

Scout Scout may refer to: Youth movement *Scout (Scouting), a child, usually 10–18 years of age, participating in the worldwide Scouting movement **Scouts (The Scout Association), section for 10-14 year olds in the United Kingdom **Scouts BSA, sectio ...

Hall, and a

YMCA YMCA, sometimes regionally called the Y, is a worldwide youth organization based in Geneva, Switzerland, with more than 64 million beneficiaries in 120 countries. It was founded on 6 June 1844 by George Williams in London, originally ...

building. There is also a

bowling green A bowling green is a finely laid, close-mown and rolled stretch of turf for playing the game of bowls. Before 1830, when Edwin Beard Budding of Thrupp, near Stroud, UK, invented the lawnmower, lawns were often kept cropped by grazing sheep on ...

and

tennis court A tennis court is the venue where the sport of tennis is played. It is a firm rectangular surface with a low net stretched across the centre. The same surface can be used to play both doubles and singles matches. A variety of surfaces can be u ...

s. As with many villages and towns through Britain, Gilfach has a War Memorial to the fallen of both world wars situated in the Garden of Peace. There are two

primary school A primary school (in Ireland, the United Kingdom, Australia, Trinidad and Tobago, Jamaica, and South Africa), junior school (in Australia), elementary school or grade school (in North America and the Philippines) is a school for primary e ...

s in Gilfach: Gilfach Fargoed Primary School, which teaches through the medium of English; and

Ysgol Gymraeg Gilfach Fargod Ysgol Gymraeg Gilfach Fargod is a Welsh medium primary school located in the village of Gilfach, Bargoed in the County Borough of Caerphilly. Established in 1963, Ysgol Gymraeg Gilfach Fargod was one of the first Welsh medium schools in the Rhy ...

, which teaches through the medium of the

Welsh language Welsh ( or ) is a Celtic language family, Celtic language of the Brittonic languages, Brittonic subgroup that is native to the Welsh people. Welsh is spoken natively in Wales, by some in England, and in Y Wladfa (the Welsh colony in Chubut P ...

. Gilfach has two places of worship: * St. Margaret's parish church * Ainon Baptist Church. The village has two

public house A pub (short for public house) is a kind of drinking establishment which is licensed to serve alcoholic drinks for consumption on the premises. The term ''public house'' first appeared in the United Kingdom in late 17th century, and was ...

s the Gwerthonor Hotel now called Butters Bar and The Capel Hotel. Gilfach has other businesses situated in the village, such as Hancox Pies ,M&M Barbers, Best One convenience store and soon a tattoo shop. The Bowling club burnt down in 2022.https://www.walesonline.co.uk/news/wales-news/fire-tears-through-gilfach-bowling-24116933 The village is served by

Gilfach Fargoed railway station Gilfach Fargoed railway station is a railway station serving the village of Gilfach, in Caerphilly county borough, south Wales. It is a stop on the Rhymney Line of the Valley Lines network. The platforms are short () and can barely accommoda ...

. The Village has a Taxi service (Gilfach Taxis).

References

External links

'Our Community'
- Old and new photographs of Gilfach and Bargoed.
The Capel Hotel Cricket Clubwww.geograph.co.uk : photos of Gilfach and surrounding area
Villages in Caerphilly County Borough {{Caerphilly-geo-stub