Violay

Loire · CC de Forez-Est · INSEE 42334

A food shop, a school and somewhere to eat or drink.

Partly served 43.7/100 · confidence: high· Better served than 66 % of the {n|commune|communes} of a similar size.

Identity

Violay (INSEE 42334) is in Loire (42), part of CC de Forez-Est. Population 1,218 (2023). ^[1]

INSEE density class: Bourgs ruraux (level 5). ^[2]

Data vintages: INSEE BPE 2025 · INSEE SIRENE 2026-09 · INSEE census (RP) 2023 · INSEE COG 2026 · INSEE density grid 2026 · DATAtourisme 2026-10-22.

Permanent link: https://vivantrural.com/en/fr/42334-violay

Vitality score

Vitality score 43.7/100 — Partly served (model fr-v0.2).

Confidence: high.

Better served than 66 % of the 13,102 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.

Component	Value (0–1)	Weight	Contribution
Daily food	0.26	25	6.56
Social	0.43	20	8.65
Education	0.63	10	6.32
Health	0.59	10	5.85
Public & culture	0.39	5	1.97
Population trend	0.35	10	3.55
Housing mix	0.85	5	4.24

Services

What is here, at a glance

Food 2 of 6

Eating out 1 of 1

Cafés and bars 0 of 1

Schools 1 of 3

Health 2 of 4

Public services 1 of 1

Culture 1 of 2

Sport 1 of 2

Everyday services 1 of 3

Lodging 0 of 2

One square per service type, shaded by how many: none, one, a few, five or more. A blank square means none was counted — the sources do not distinguish “none here” from “not counted”.

A food shop, a school and somewhere to eat or drink. ^[3,4]

1 × Bakery (boulangerie) (LE GRENIER DES GOURMANDISES). ^[3,4]

1 × Grocery (épicerie / supérette) (LE RELAIS VIOLAYSIEN). ^[3,4]

4 × Restaurant (SARL PIZZ A DEUX · RESTAURANT LOIC PICAMAL · LA PIZZ'OUILLE). ^[3,4]

2 × Primary school (élémentaire) (ECOLE PRIMAIRE ROUTE DE CHENE · ECOLE MONTESSORI ARC EN CIEL). ^[3]

3 × GP (médecin généraliste) (OLIVIER NICOLAS, MÉDECIN · PAUL FARGE, MÉDECIN · ANDRADA-MARIA COZAC, MÉDECIN). ^[3]

1 × Pharmacy (PHARMACIE TULOUP). ^[3,4]

1 × Post office / agence postale (VIOLAY RELAIS VIOLAYSIEN RP). ^[3]

1 × Library (BIBLIOTHEQUE - VIOLAY). ^[3]

1 × Gym / sports hall (COMPLEXE SPORTIF). ^[3]

1 × Fuel station (STATION SERVICE). ^[3,4]

Not counted, because the business register records them as closed: 1 × Grocery (épicerie / supérette), 1 × Bank, 3 × Hairdresser.

Not found in the commune: Butcher (boucherie), Supermarket, Café / bar, Nursery school (maternelle). ^[3,4]

All 25 service types, with per-source counts

Type	Count	Names	Sources
Bakery (boulangerie)	1	LE GRENIER DES GOURMANDISES	INSEE BPE 1 / INSEE SIRENE 1 [3,4]
Butcher (boucherie)	0		INSEE BPE 0 / INSEE SIRENE 0 [3,4]
Grocery (épicerie / supérette)	1	LE RELAIS VIOLAYSIEN	INSEE SIRENE 1 / INSEE BPE 0 [3,4]
Supermarket	0		INSEE BPE 0 / INSEE SIRENE 0 [3,4]
Cheese shop (fromagerie)	0		INSEE SIRENE 0 [4]
Fishmonger	0		INSEE BPE 0 / INSEE SIRENE 0 [3,4]
Restaurant	4	SARL PIZZ A DEUX · RESTAURANT LOIC PICAMAL · LA PIZZ'OUILLE	INSEE BPE 4 / INSEE SIRENE 4 [3,4]
Café / bar	0		INSEE SIRENE 0 [4]
Nursery school (maternelle)	0		INSEE BPE 0 [3]
Primary school (élémentaire)	2	ECOLE PRIMAIRE ROUTE DE CHENE · ECOLE MONTESSORI ARC EN CIEL	INSEE BPE 2 [3]
Collège	0		INSEE BPE 0 [3]
GP (médecin généraliste)	3	OLIVIER NICOLAS, MÉDECIN · PAUL FARGE, MÉDECIN · ANDRADA-MARIA COZAC, MÉDECIN	INSEE BPE 3 [3]
Pharmacy	1	PHARMACIE TULOUP	INSEE BPE 1 / INSEE SIRENE 1 [3,4]
Nurse	0		INSEE BPE 0 [3]
Dentist	0		INSEE BPE 0 [3]
Post office / agence postale	1	VIOLAY RELAIS VIOLAYSIEN RP	INSEE BPE 1 [3]
Library	1	BIBLIOTHEQUE - VIOLAY	INSEE BPE 1 [3]
Cinema	0		INSEE BPE 0 [3]
Gym / sports hall	1	COMPLEXE SPORTIF	INSEE BPE 1 [3]
Swimming pool	0		INSEE BPE 0 [3]
Bank	0		INSEE BPE 0 [3]
Hairdresser	0		INSEE BPE 0 / INSEE SIRENE 0 [3]
Fuel station	1	STATION SERVICE	INSEE BPE 1 / INSEE SIRENE 1 [3,4]
Hotel	0		INSEE BPE 0 / INSEE SIRENE 0 [3,4]
Campsite	0		INSEE BPE 0 / INSEE SIRENE 0 [3,4]

Market and village life

A market is recorded here, but no source gives the day. ^[5]

Trajectory

1968: 1,339 peak 1990: 1,425 2023: 1,218 axis from zero, so the slope compares with any other commune

Population 1,317 (2012) → 1,218 (2023): -7.5 % over 10 years. ^[6,1]

Population 1,425 (1990) → 1,218 (2023): -14.5 % over 30 years. ^[7,1]

Dwellings (2023): 649, of which 7.6 % second homes and 7.4 % vacant. ^[8]

Access and surroundings

Which way the everyday services lie

In the commune Bakery, Primary school, GP, Pharmacy Food shop — 5.7 km SE Straight-line, from the mairie, in the direction given. Services in the same town share a spoke. Distance is not travel time: a pass or an estuary can double it.

Bakery (Violay): 0.2 km to the west (straight line). ^[9]

Food shop (Villechenève): 5.7 km to the south-east (straight line). ^[10]

GP (Violay): 0.1 km to the west (straight line). ^[9]

Pharmacy (Violay): 0.1 km to the north-west (straight line). ^[9]

Primary school (Violay): 0.2 km to the north-east (straight line). ^[9]

Climate

Where this sits nationally

Days at or above 30 °C 10.4

Days at or below 0 °C 75.7

Muggy days a summer 0.4

Each track runs from the 5th to the 95th percentile of the 34,141 communes with that measurement; the tick is the median. A value beyond either end sits at the end and is marked ▸.

An average of 10 days a year at or above 30 °C and 76 days at or below 0 °C, over 18 complete years in 1995–2024. ^[11]

Measured at the ROZIER-EN-DONZY weather station, 8.2 km away at 530 m; the village itself is at 812 m. ^[11]

The village sits 282 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. ^[11]

Muggy days — a dew point at or above 18 °C — average 0 days a summer. ^[11]

Humidity measured at ROZIER-EN-DONZY, 8.2 km away at 530 m, over 13 summers. ^[11]

That station sits 282 m below the village, so each day's humidity was shifted by 3.69 °C per km before the muggy days were counted. ^[11]

An average of 878 mm of rain a year, spread over 117 days — about 7.5 mm on a day it rains. ^[11]

Rainfall measured at PANISSIERES, 5.7 km away at 614 m. Rainfall is not adjusted for altitude: unlike temperature it has no simple gradient to correct by. ^[11]

Uncertainties

No specific uncertainties flagged.

References

INSEE census (RP) 2023 — 42334/2023
INSEE density grid 2026
INSEE BPE 2025
INSEE SIRENE 2026-09
DATAtourisme 2026-02— https://data.datatourisme.fr/13/3041aa06-a2df-39fc-97bf-77db63c582f2— “Marché hebdomadaire”(unverified)
INSEE census (RP) 2023 — 42334/2012
INSEE census (RP) 2023 — 42334/1990
INSEE census (RP) 2023 — 42334/logement/2023
INSEE BPE 2025 — 42334
INSEE BPE 2025 — 69263
Météo-France daily climatology 1995-2024

Villages like this one

Matched on size, density, second homes and which everyday shops and services are present — not on the score, so a village of the same kind that is doing better or worse shows up rather than being hidden.

Commune	Dept	Distance	Population	Score	Band	Climate vs here
Sergines	89	289 km N	1,223	43.4	Partly served	Warmer summers and milder winters.Summers feel about as humid.summer 77 % · winter 59 % · humidity 86 %
Montricoux	82	292 km SW	1,172	50.1	Partly served	Warmer summers and milder winters.Summers feel more humid.summer 0 % · winter 72 % · humidity 64 %
Chabreloche	63	51 km W	1,156	34.3	Few services	Much the same temperatures.Summers feel about as humid.summer 87 % · winter 86 % · humidity 100 %
Solignac-sur-Loire	43	105 km S	1,289	46.8	Partly served	Similar summers, colder winters.Summers feel about as humid.summer 90 % · winter 77 % · humidity 100 %
Neulise	42	15 km W	1,344	47.4	Partly served	Warmer summers and milder winters.Summers feel more humid.summer 85 % · winter 77 % · humidity 29 %
Gerbéviller	54	336 km NE	1,316	37.9	Few services	no figures

Order by distance instead

Commune	Dept	Distance	Population	Score	Band	Climate vs here
Neulise	42	15 km W	1,344	47.4	Partly served	Warmer summers and milder winters.Summers feel more humid.summer 85 % · winter 77 % · humidity 29 %
Chabreloche	63	51 km W	1,156	34.3	Few services	Much the same temperatures.Summers feel about as humid.summer 87 % · winter 86 % · humidity 100 %
Solignac-sur-Loire	43	105 km S	1,289	46.8	Partly served	Similar summers, colder winters.Summers feel about as humid.summer 90 % · winter 77 % · humidity 100 %
Sergines	89	289 km N	1,223	43.4	Partly served	Warmer summers and milder winters.Summers feel about as humid.summer 77 % · winter 59 % · humidity 86 %
Montricoux	82	292 km SW	1,172	50.1	Partly served	Warmer summers and milder winters.Summers feel more humid.summer 0 % · winter 72 % · humidity 64 %
Gerbéviller	54	336 km NE	1,316	37.9	Few services	no figures

Sort and compare these on the full list →

…and in much the same climate

The same match on size and services, narrowed to communes whose summers, winters and summer humidity are all close to Violay's. All three are required, so this section is absent for the 11.8 % of communes with no humidity station near enough to measure: two temperature axes alone cannot tell a muggy coast from a dry one.

Commune	Dept	Distance	Population	Score	Band	Climate vs here
Chabreloche	63	51 km W	1,156	34.3	Few services	Much the same temperatures.Summers feel about as humid.summer 87 % · winter 86 % · humidity 100 %
Juniville	08	394 km N	1,224	44.2	Partly served	Much the same temperatures.Summers feel about as humid.summer 92 % · winter 88 % · humidity 86 %
Courcelles-sur-Nied	57	386 km N	1,194	41.3	Partly served	Much the same temperatures.Summers feel about as humid.summer 92 % · winter 99 % · humidity 93 %
Nomeny	54	366 km N	1,142	43.8	Partly served	Much the same temperatures.Summers feel about as humid.summer 95 % · winter 96 % · humidity 93 %
Rilly-la-Montagne	51	369 km N	1,003	48.3	Partly served	Much the same temperatures.Summers feel about as humid.summer 97 % · winter 95 % · humidity 86 %
Roppe	90	281 km NE	1,041	47.1	Partly served	Much the same temperatures.Summers feel about as humid.summer 97 % · winter 86 % · humidity 93 %

Elsewhere

Commune website · Wikipedia (en) ·Wikipedia (fr) · INSEE dossier complet · OpenStreetMap · Web search · Map

Permanent link: https://vivantrural.com/en/fr/42334-violay