A £30m loan fund to help Welsh charities finance new premises or refurbish existing properties has been launched by the Unity Trust Bank and umbrella body WCVA.

The fund will give out £6m annually for the next five years and has been designed to create a network of business centres and community hubs for charities across Wales by 2018.

The first loan to be made through the new fund will be to Rhondda-based charity Valleys Kids, which will allow them to re-finance their purchase of the Pop Factory in Porth and help develop a residential centre for young people on the Gower. The loan will be £395,000.

WCVA chief executive, Graham Benfield, said: “This finance will provide opportunities for organisations to own their premises and develop an asset base. This will allow them to control their costs, tailor their facilities to the needs of the people that use their services and work towards a more financially secure future.

“Increasingly we are also seeing the value of ‘community hubs’, and we envisage this fund helping to create a network of focal points within communities across Wales providing social and economic opportunities to local people.”

A spokeswoman said interest rates on the laons are negotiable on a case-by-case basis, but typically will be base rate plus 2.25% with a minimum rate of 4%. Fixed rates are available for up to five years.