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, rising slightly to 3,848 at the 2011 Census. Location and population Most of the village is on the east bank of the Rhymney River, in the historic county of Monmouthshire, but those parts of the village on the west bank are known as Glan-y-Nant and are in the historic county of Glamorganshire. At the 2001 census, 3,842 people lived in Pengam, and there were about 1,561 homes. 1% of residents were from ethnic minority groups, 27.67% of people were between the ages of 20 and 39, and there were 797 people over the age of 60. 67.78% of residents owned their own homes either owned outright or with a mortgage. 24.79% of residents lived in council or housing association homes. 5.89% of residents lived in privately rented homes. 1.54% of residents lived completely rent-free. The population rose slightly to 3,848 at the 2011 Census. The population density of Pengam is approximately 4,204 people per square mile (1623/km2). The actual size of the electoral ward is 0.9 square miles (2.3 km2). The biggest employer in this area (with 29.42% of people) is the manufacturing industry. Pengam is home to Ysgol Gyfun Cwm Rhymni, Pengam Primary School, Fleur-de-Lys Primary and Ysgol Trelyn. Coal and the railways Two collieries previously existed in, or near, Pengam. One at the top of the Main Street (Pengam Pit), and the other was on the Aberbargoed Road (Britannia Pit). The sinking of Pengam Colliery was begun in the late 1890s by the Rhymney Iron Co. Ltd. to work the Brithdir House coal seam at a depth of 312 yards. By 1908, it was employing 196 men and in 1918 the workforce numbered 518. During the late 1920s, it came under the ownership of the Powell Duffryn Associated Collieries Ltd., who employed 67 men there in 1938. The workforce numbered 195 in 1945. As with most House Coal collieries in this area, Pengam was troubled with water inundation and heavy water pumps worked around the clock to avoid the mineworkings flooding. Production ceased in 1956 but it was kept open as an underground pumping station, to prevent the flooding of the nearby Britannia colliery. There