Cardinal George Pell is likely to be housed in the same prison as former friend and notorious paedophile priest Gerald Ridsdale.

Key points: Pell could be sent to a jail known for housing convicted sex offenders and criminals with "special needs"

Pell could be sent to a jail known for housing convicted sex offenders and criminals with "special needs" The Hopkins facility in Ararat also houses Pell's former housemate, paedophile priest Gerald Ridsdale

The Hopkins facility in Ararat also houses Pell's former housemate, paedophile priest Gerald Ridsdale Victoria's Corrections Department says its priority is ensuring prisoner safety

The ABC understands the Victorian Department of Corrections considers the Hopkins Correctional Centre in Ararat, 200 kilometres west of Melbourne, to be the most appropriate place to send the high-profile cleric.

Ridsdale, a former housemate of Pell, is serving a 29-year sentence in the regional jail after being convicted of 45 counts of child sex abuse spanning several decades.

Pell was an ardent supporter of Ridsdale and often stressed he had no knowledge of Ridsdale's abuse.

The Cardinal has spent almost six months in solitary confinement at the Melbourne Remand Centre where he has been let out of his cell for an hour a day.

However, after Pell today lost his appeal against his conviction over sexual offences against two choirboys in Melbourne in the 1990s, Corrections staff must now settle on a more permanent location for the 78-year-old to serve the remainder of his six-year sentence.

As a policy, Corrections Victoria does not disclose where new prisoners are sent, however the unique nature of Pell's case leaves it with few options about where to imprison him.

George Pell leaves court after losing his appeal on Wednesday. ( AAP: James Ross )

Prison population consists largely of convicted sex offenders

Pell is the highest-ranking Catholic to be convicted of a sexual offence.

His fame and the nature of his offending will prompt Corrections management to consider prisons that protect him from other inmates who may regard him as a target.

An affidavit provided by the Corrections Assistant Commissioner during the Cardinal's pre-sentencing noted "[Pell] is a high-profile prisoner, who has been given protection status, where there are significant security concerns".

Corrections Victoria regularly houses its most "at-risk" prisoners at Hopkins and the prison population consists largely of convicted sex offenders and criminals requiring "special needs".

This often refers to high-profile criminals or convicted police officers who fear for their safety in jail.

Prison close to Ballarat

Hopkins is an hour's drive from St Patrick's in Ballarat, the secondary school which Pell attended and where he later served as a priest.

Hopkins prison has recently undergone a major expansion, increasing its capacity from roughly 350 inmates to more than 700.

Its website says the medium-security facility has a newly built medical centre and recreation complex.

If Pell is sent there, he may be required to work full time on tasks including building wooden products, screen printing, welding, cooking or laundry cleaning.

Ararat's Hopkins Correctional Centre is in the same region as Ballarat where Cardinal Pell attended school and served as a priest. ( ABC News: Jane Cowan )

In submissions to the court earlier this year, the Cardinal's then-defence counsel Robert Richter QC urged Victorian County Court Chief Judge Peter Kidd to consider the old age and medical requirements of his client.

This could also play into Corrections' potential decision to send Pell to Hopkins which can accommodate "aged" criminals.

A Corrections spokesman told the ABC its priority was to ensure prisoner safety.

"Corrections authorities conduct rigorous security and risk assessments on anyone coming into the prison system to ensure their placement is safe and secure," the spokesman said.

"Prisoner placements are regularly monitored and reviewed, and may be modified where an assessment finds their risk and individual requirements have changed."

Pell will not be eligible for parole until 2022.

Editor's note: On Tuesday April 7, 2020, the High Court in a unanimous decision upheld Cardinal Pell's appeal and quashed his convictions on all five charges.