Overview

Diocese at a Glance

The Catholic Diocese of Ballarat is a diverse and geographically extensive Diocese of 51 parishes which covers the western third of Victoria, extending from the Murray River in the North to the Southern Ocean in the South. To the west it is bounded by the Archdiocese of Adelaide and the Diocese of Port Pirie, to the north by the Diocese of Wilcannia-Forbes and to the East by the Diocese of Sandhurst and the Archdiocese of Melbourne.

To access Parish information highlight and click on the parish area:

The Diocese has a number of provincial centres and large rural areas. There is a wide range and mix of primary and secondary industry and tourism and many places of natural beauty - the Great Ocean Road, the Grampians, the towns of the Murray River, the Little Desert and the goldfields.

The total population of the Diocese is 377,848 and the Catholic population is 98,922 (2006 Census). There are 51 parishes in the Diocese comprising of approximately 125 Mass communities. 20 of these parishes do not have a resident priest. There are 64 priests in the Diocese, of whom 41 are in active ministry. There are 3 religious women who are parish leaders and a number of religious orders present in the Diocese.