The ancient and historic town of Pilton is today a suburb of Barnstaple. It is located about half a mile north on the outskirts of the town in the English county of Devon, and the district of North Devon. In 2009, the Pilton (Barnstaple) ward had a population of 4,239 living in some 1,959 dwellings. It has its own primary and secondary school. It is separated from the adjacent town of Barnstaple by the originally meandering River Yeo, now much straightened.