This report on research undertaken by the Brotherhood and Community Foresters Finance draws on the literature and stakeholder consultation to explore microfinance in Australia, highlighting the need to achieve sustainability, scale up successful pilot programs and measure impact on financial exclusion. The recommendations point to next steps to meet these challenges.

Researchers from the Brotherhood of St Laurence and from Griffith University law school sought the views of low-income people about credit regulations, focusing on disclosure and the safety net provisions in the Uniform Consumer Credit Code (UCCC). They found that current pre-contractual disclosure documents did not help participants to understand many of the important terms...

Genevieve Sheehan and Gordon Renouf investigated the reasons that many low-income and other excluded people are uninsured. Through group interviews in Victoria and New South Wales, they identified specific barriers to taking out or maintaining insurance cover – not just simple cost, but also perceived limitations of insurance products or insurers and attitudes to assets...

This study of the BSL and Community Sector Banking’s personal loan pilot, which provided small loans to purchase household goods and services, points to the creditworthiness of a group of people on low incomes. For many participants, obtaining a loan was not only about money, but also about dignity and inclusion. The report recommends that...