Roche-en-Forez

Identity

Roche-en-Forez (INSEE 42188) is in Loire (42), part of CA Loire Forez Agglomération (LFA). Population 251 (2023). ^[1]

INSEE density class: Rural à habitat dispersé (level 6). ^[2]

Data vintages: INSEE BPE 2025 · INSEE SIRENE 2026-09 · INSEE census (RP) 2023 · INSEE COG 2026 · INSEE density grid 2026.

Permanent link: https://vivantrural.com/en/fr/42188-roche-en-forez

Vitality score

Vitality score 15/100 — No daily shops (model fr-v0.2).

Confidence: high.

Better served than 30 % of the 17,223 communes of a similar size.

Compare this with communes of a similar size. The score measures how well a place is served relative to its own size band, and larger communes score higher as a rule — so it reads meaningfully against another village, and misleadingly against a town.

Measured but not scored in this model: Market. See the methodology for why.

Services

A school, but no food shop and nowhere to eat or drink. ^[3,4]

1 × Primary school (élémentaire) (ECOLE PRIMAIRE PUBLIQUE BOURG). ^[3]

Not found in the commune: Bakery (boulangerie), Butcher (boucherie), Grocery (épicerie / supérette), Supermarket, Restaurant, Café / bar, Nursery school (maternelle), GP (médecin généraliste), Pharmacy, Post office / agence postale, Library. ^[3,4]

Market and village life

Market day: unknown — nothing found in the datasets or on the commune website.

Trajectory

Population 271 (2012) → 251 (2023): -7.4 % over 10 years. ^[5,1]

Population 287 (1990) → 251 (2023): -12.5 % over 30 years. ^[6,1]

Dwellings (2023): 188, of which 23.4 % second homes and 14.9 % vacant. ^[7]

Access and surroundings

Bakery (Essertines-en-Châtelneuf): 5 km to the east (straight line). ^[8]

Food shop (Lérigneux): 1.9 km to the south-east (straight line). ^[9]

GP (Essertines-en-Châtelneuf): 4.9 km to the east (straight line). ^[8]

Pharmacy (Montbrison): 8.4 km to the east (straight line). ^[10]

Primary school (Roche-en-Forez): 0.1 km to the east (straight line). ^[11]

Climate

An average of 5 days a year at or above 30 °C and 97 days at or below 0 °C, over 18 complete years in 1995–2024. ^[12]

Measured at the VERRIERES EN FO weather station, 6.6 km away at 770 m; the village itself is at 933 m. ^[12]

The village sits 163 m above the station, so each day's reading was shifted by 6.06 °C per km of altitude before the days were counted. Expect the result to be within about 0.68 °C. ^[12]

Muggy days — a dew point at or above 18 °C — average 0 days a summer. ^[12]

Humidity measured at CHALMAZEL_RA, 12.4 km away at 990 m, over 22 summers. ^[12]

That station sits 57 m above the village, so each day's humidity was shifted by 3.69 °C per km before the muggy days were counted. ^[12]

An average of 873 mm of rain a year, spread over 117 days — about 7.5 mm on a day it rains. ^[12]

Rainfall measured at VERRIERES EN FO, 6.6 km away at 770 m. Rainfall is not adjusted for altitude: unlike temperature it has no simple gradient to correct by. ^[12]

Uncertainties

No specific uncertainties flagged.

References

1. INSEE census (RP) 2023 — 42188/2023
2. INSEE density grid 2026
3. INSEE BPE 2025
4. INSEE SIRENE 2026-09
5. INSEE census (RP) 2023 — 42188/2012
6. INSEE census (RP) 2023 — 42188/1990
7. INSEE census (RP) 2023 — 42188/logement/2023
8. INSEE BPE 2025 — 42089
9. INSEE BPE 2025 — 42121
10. INSEE BPE 2025 — 42147
11. INSEE BPE 2025 — 42188
12. Météo-France daily climatology 1995-2024