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Dinas Powys (; also spelt "Dinas Powis" in English) is a town and community in the Vale of Glamorgan, South Wales. Its name means "fort of the provincial place" and refers to the Iron Age hillfort which overlooks the village. Dinas Powys is south-west of the centre of Cardiff and is situated on the A4055 road from Cardiff to Barry, making it a popular dormitory village for city commuters. It neighbours the larger town of Penarth.
Although several housing developments have been added since the late 20th century, the old centre of Dinas Powys maintains a traditional, almost rural character. It has a village common and small independent shops, pubs, restaurants and community facilities. Garages, small supermarkets, a pharmacy and a veterinary practice can be found in other parts of the town.
According to recent , the population is in the region of 8,800, making Dinas Powys the fifth largest settlement in the Vale of Glamorgan.
The castle was originally the seat of a Norman noble called Baron de Sumeri or , but the structure went into decline around 1322 when the de Sumeri male family line came to an end.
In the 11th century, Dinas Powys was under the control of Sir Reginald de Sully, one of the Twelve Knights of Glamorgan. In 1591, Sir Edward Mansel of Margam wrote his historical document The Winning of Glamorgan and said:
Dinas Powys was included in the original medieval Welsh political sub-division called the Cantref Brenhinol (the Royal Hundred); this later became the commote known as the Hundred of Dinas Powis, which also encompassed St Andrews Major, Michaelston-le-Pit, Westra, Penarth, Cogan, Sully, Lavernock and Llandough.
The village population remained almost static at about 300–400 people until the second half of the 19th century, when there was an influx into the community, including a large contingent from the West Country. The growth of the coal industry saw the first passenger train arrive in Dinas Powys on 20 December 1898, and thereafter the population increased rapidly. The new rail link was laid at the bottom end of the Dinas Powys valley and provided a rapid connection to new docks built in Cardiff, Barry and Penarth to handle the expanding coal trade from the South Wales Valleys. At that time the only features below St Andrews Major were the small hamlet of Dinas Powys, the rail line, Cadoxton Brook and a number of small farms. The new rail link provided far better communication and transport to the area, making it a more attractive residential prospect, and many workers from Barry and Cardiff moved in. By 1891, the village population had more than doubled to 1,149; ten years later, it was over 2,000. Dinas Powys expanded in two ways: from the railway link towards St. Andrew's Major many imposing houses were built, such as that of Garnhill House; while along the railway, near the current area of Eastbrook, was new housing of more modest proportions.
A few years after the railway was constructed, the main Cardiff Road was developed over the previous unmetalled trackway that followed the route of the railway line. This provided a further burst of population growth and house building.
The surrounding soils are mostly a strong, brown, dry earth, useful for arable farming; the growing of various grains contributed to the area being a mostly farming community until the modern era. The substratum under the whole area is a limestone that was likely laid down under a warm ocean in the distant past. The village has not been able to spread northwards, because of golf courses and protected woodlands between Dinas Powys and Michaelston-le-Pit. The freeholders of Cwrt-yr-Ala Estate prevented the two from merging. More recent housing development has taken place in a linear fashion either side of the main Cardiff road and in the direction of Cadoxton and Barry. Cwm George and Cwrt-yr-Ala are woodlands in the area.
Maps over the last hundred years show that Penarth and Dinas Powys have spread and grown closer together. In many places the two communities are only separated by a few hundred yards and a couple of fields; however, no direct road connections have been added, entailing a car journey of several miles via Llandough. The only existing direct road is the medieval, winding single-track Cross Common Road. Another traditional lane crossing, which existed between the current site of the Tesco Express mini-supermarket and the Erw Delyn school at Redlands Heights, Penarth, was closed to through traffic following extensions to the Murch estate in the 1970s.
According to the Environment Agency, in the floods of October 1998 six properties at Dinas Powys were affected. Flooding was caused by the floodwater overtopping the banks of the Cadoxton River among others, restrictions to flow in channels, and surcharging of drains.
An electoral ward of the same name exists, for elections to Vale of Glamorgan Council. This ward mainly covers Dinas Powys but also stretches north to Michaelston. The total population of the ward at the 2011 census was 7,799. Until May 2017, the ward was represented by three Plaid Cymru councillors and an independent. In the 2017 elections, all four seats were won by the Conservatives (Vince Driscoll, Andy Robertson, Rob Crowley and Steve Griffiths). The Conservatives also gained seats at Plaid Cymru's expense on the community council.
Dinas Powys falls within the Cardiff South and Penarth parliamentary constituency and is currently represented in the UK Parliament by the Welsh Labour MP Stephen Doughty.
The Senedd constituency of Vale of Glamorgan is represented by Jane Hutt of Welsh Labour.
There are few major employers in the village. The majority of the working population commutes to Cardiff, Penarth and Barry.
Garnhill House (and Estate) is a Grade II listed building with terraced gardens exhibited at the Royal Academy in 1904, and has been occupied by the Green family for well over 100 years.
The Mount, a late Georgian villa, is another Grade II listed building. It was originally a farmhouse called Mount Pleasant and was occupied by the Hurst family, who held the manor of Dinas Powys.
Dinas Powys is also noted for its 14th-century Norman parish church, dedicated to St Andrew. This is located in the hamlet of St Andrews Major, just under a mile away from the village centre. There is also the nearby church of St Michael and All Angels in Michaelston-le-Pit.
There are two Methodism chapels in the village. One is a small "tin tabernacle" in the Eastbrook area; the larger Methodist Church backs onto Station Road. Dinas Powys Baptist Church meets in the Parish Hall on Britway Road, and Bethesda Chapel is on Fairoaks. Ebenezer Presbyterianism Church is located in the Highwalls Road area.
The village has no secondary school of its own. It was previously home to one half of Penarth’s St Cyres School. The site was the smaller of the school's two campuses and was for pupils aged 11 to 14; the site for the older children was in Penarth. However, the Dinas Powys site closed in 2012, and was replaced by a single, larger redeveloped site in Penarth.
Dinas Powys Golf Club was founded in 1914 and has views over the city of Cardiff and Cardiff Bay.
Dinas Powys Cricket Club was established in 1882. The club fields three sides in the Welsh Club Cricket Conference, playing their home league matches at Parc Bryn y Don. There is also a Midweek League side and a Sunday friendly side, playing home matches on the village common. The club also has a junior section.
There has been an active branch of the Pony Club in the village since 1975. There are also many voluntary organisations, including a large Scout group.
In the TV sitcom Gavin & Stacey, the house of Mick and Pam, which is supposed to be in Essex, is actually in Dinas Powys.
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