The Diocese of Newcastle is a Church of England diocese based in Newcastle upon Tyne, covering the historic county of Northumberland (and therefore including the part of Tyne and Wear north of the River Tyne), as well as the area of Alston Moor in Cumbria (historic Cumberland). The cathedral is Newcastle Cathedral (until 1882 the Parish Church of St Nicholas) and the diocesan see is vacant since the retirement of Christine Hardman.