The village is in the Arfon (UK Parliament constituency) and the Gwynedd Council Ward of Penisa'r Waun.

The village is protected from Llanberis and has a dedicated community beat manager.

In the 19th century, the village was built to house workers for the nearby Dinorwic slate quarry.

The village was home to the Ysgol Brynrefail before the campus was moved to the nearby town of Llanrug in the 1960s.

Opened in 2004, Caban is home to a café, a meeting room, which doubles as the village's chapel, and 13 business units.