The money has been allocated through a community grant scheme offered by NRMA Insurance.

Western Family Referral Service manager David Ryan said the UnitingCare Burnside 120 Countdown project was assisting learner drivers with limited or no access to a registered vehicle and supervising licensed driver.

"The program is working in Dubbo and Wellington with two cars and a number of mentors," Mr Ryan said.

"Through hundreds of volunteer hours about 14 learners have been able to gain their provisional licence in the past 18 months.

"Obtaining a driver's licence is an important employability skill and also something of a rite of passage in our society.

"It has been rewarding to see the positive results from the program, particularly when we know some of the challenging situations and difficulties the learner drivers have faced.

"Some of the participants don't have family in the local area. They may be young people in out of home care or living on their own with very little support."

Mr Ryan said the learner driver program had provided assistance for school students, young mothers and middle-aged adults.

"For one reason or another they have not had the resources and support necessary to gain the independence of driving," he said.

"Local driving instructor Ben O'Malley has started off working with our learners and by providing some profession guidance, has got them to a level of competence where they can be safely handed over to volunteer supervising drivers.

"Mentors are matched with learners and go out together to practice driving in town and on highways, on dirt and sealed roads, in wet and dry conditions, during the day and at night.

"The learner drivers and mentors spend a lot of time together and develop relationships that help to reduce barriers between different sections of the community.

"The program is great for the learners and just as important for the mentors."

This year 78 organisations across NSW have received community grants with NRMA Insurance investing around $306,000 into local initiatives,

Since the program's inception in 2003, more than 1650 projects have been supported nationally totalling an investment of more than $7.3 million. The community grants program supports organisations and projects working in the areas of crime prevention, road safety, emergency readiness and response, and the environment.