NAB accessed and donated $45,000 in loan capital to the scheme and according to NILS coordinator Jim Foord it has been used well.

“The scheme allows us to lend money to people on low incomes who would not otherwise be able to access affordable credit,” Mr Foord said.

“The NAB Scheme has really helped us extend our existing lending program and help more financially disadvantaged people.”

The donated funds enabled the Neighbourhood Centre to extend an existing program that ran for four years with financial support from the Mercy and Ian Potter foundations.

NILS loans are for people who have expenses that may be beyond their budget to pay outright - such as the cost of white goods, furniture, dental bills, furniture, medical equipment and other expenses deemed worthwhile.

A dedicated loans committee examines each loan application, and approves the loans that are deemed worthy.

Available money is loaned to holders of a Centrelink Health Care Card who live locally and have the capacity to repay the money over a 12 to 18-month period.

The loans are not intended to repay existing debts and are targeted at people with a good credit history.

“The money is loaned as it is repaid, so it disadvantages everyone else when it is tied up for too long,” Mr Foord said.

Although the committee approves an average of four or five loans per month, the number rose sharply in May, when 15 people applied.

“It may be due in part to the current financial crisis, but I think the increase in loans may also result from word of mouth - people finding out about the loan from friends,” Mr Foord said.