Dioceses

The Catholic Church in England and Wales is made up of 22 dioceses. A Diocese refers to a community of the Christian faithful in communion of faith and sacraments with their bishop ordained in apostolic succession.

These particular Churches ‘are constituted after the model of the universal Church; it is in these and formed out of them that the one and unique Catholic Church exists.’ Catechism of the Catholic Church 833.

Arundel and Brighton

The Diocese of Arundel and Brighton serves the counties of Sussex and those parts of Surrey outside the Greater London Boroughs.

Birmingham

The Archdiocese of Birmingham is divided into three Pastoral Areas.

Brentwood

The Diocese of Brentwood was created in 1917 and comprises the Administrative County of Essex, the unitary authorities of Southend-on-Sea and Thurrock, and the London Boroughs of Barking and Dagenham, Havering, Newham, Redbridge and Waltham Forest.

Cardiff

The Archdiocese of Cardiff has eight deaneries covering Cardiff, the Welsh valleys, Bridgend, Hereford, Newport, North Gwent and Pontypridd.

Clifton

The Diocese of Clifton covers the West of England and includes the City and County of Bristol, the counties of Gloucestershire, Somerset, Wiltshire, North Somerset, South Gloucestershire and Bath and North East Somerset.

East Anglia

The Diocese of East Anglia spans the Counties of Norfolk, Suffolk, Cambridgeshire and the Unitary Authority of Peterborough.

Hallam

The Diocese of Hallam was formed in May 1980 after the division of the Dioceses of Leeds and Nottingham.

Hexham and Newcastle

The Diocese of Hexham and Newcastle is situated in the North East of England covering the counties of Northumberland and Durham and the unitary authorities of Darlington, Gateshead, Hartlepool, Newcastle, North Tyneside, South Tyneside, Sunderland and Stockton-on-Tees north of the River Tees.

Lancaster

The Diocese of Lancaster extends along the west of England from the Ribble River in the south of Preston to the Scottish border, comprising the counties of Cumbria and much of Lancashire.

Leeds

The Diocese of Leeds comprises the whole of West Yorkshire - with the exception of the parish of Todmorden - together with parishes in the East Riding, North Yorkshire, Greater Manchester and Lancashire.

Liverpool

The Archdiocese of Liverpool covers the city itself and the surrounding areas including Wigan, St Helens, Southport and the Isle of Man.

Menevia

The Diocese of Menevia covers Swansea, Carmarthen, Llandrindod wells, Haverfordwest and Port Talbot.

Middlesbrough

The Diocese of Middlesbrough consists of the boroughs of Middlesbrough, Redcar and Cleveland, Stockton on Tees (south of the river), the cities of Kingston upon Hull and York, East Yorkshire and most of North Yorkshire.

Northampton

The Diocese of Northampton consists of the counties of Bedford, Buckingham and Northampton. The town of Slough also falls within the diocesan boundary.

Nottingham

The Diocese of Nottingham was founded in 1850 and covers the counties of Nottinghamshire, Derbyshire, Leicestershire and Rutland, and Lincolnshire.

Plymouth

The Diocese of Plymouth, created in 1850, covers almost the whole of south-west England, serving Catholics in the counties of Devon, Dorset and Cornwall - including the Isles of Scilly.

Portsmouth

The Diocese of Portsmouth covers Hampshire, the Isle of Wight, the Channel Isles and parts of Berkshire, Dorset and Oxfordshire.

Salford

The Diocese of Salford consists of the Hundreds of Salford and Blackburn in the old county of Lancashire and Dunsop Bridge.

Shrewsbury

The Diocese of Shrewsbury encompasses parts of the North West of England and parts of the West Midlands.

Southwark

The Archdiocese of Southwark covers the London boroughs south of the Thames, the County of Kent and the Medway Unitary Authority.

Westminster

Home to Westminster Cathedral, the mother church for Catholics in England and Wales, the Diocese of Westminster has 214 parishes covering West, Central and North London, the Borough of Spelthorne and Hertfordshire.

Wrexham

The Diocese of Wrexham covers North Wales - the areas surrounding Caernarfon, Colwyn Bay, Dolgellau, Flint, Rhyl and of course, Wrexham.