The Diocese of Melbourne is divided into areas of episcopal care in which assistant bishops exercise a pastoral role on behalf of the archbishop.

Together, they comprise the Woi Wurrung equivalent of the diocesan vision of Making the Word of God Fully Known through “gathering in the divine presence to speak out and proclaim”.

Churchmanship within the Melbourne diocese is diverse and the three nineteenth-century Anglican traditions, Evangelical, Liberal and Anglo-Catholic, are all significantly represented.

[6] The September 2007 decision of the Appellate Tribunal opening the way for the consecration of women to the episcopate was welcomed by then-Archbishop Philip Freier.

[9][10] The ordination of women to be bishops is opposed by some within the diocese, particularly conservative Evangelicals and some Anglo-Catholics, necessitating the provision of alternative episcopal oversight.

Most conservatives and Evangelicals remain opposed to the blessing of same-sex unions and the ordination of non-celibate gay and lesbian clergy.

[citation needed] However, the diocese also contains a number of liberal parishes and prominent laypeople, such as Muriel Porter, who have been very vocal in their support for changes in the church's teaching on human sexuality.

[4][13] In November 2007, an all-female committee from the Diocese of Melbourne made a submission to the Victorian Law Reform Commission outlining its position in relation to abortion.