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                          NEW ENGLAND BANCSHARES, INC.
                               855 Enfield Street
                                Enfield, CT 06082

For Immediate Release

CONTACT:  Scott D. Nogles, Chief Financial Officer
          (860) 253-5200

              New England Bancshares, Inc. Reports Earnings for the
                  Three and Twelve Months Ended March 31, 2007

ENFIELD, CT, May 1, 2007 - New England Bancshares,  Inc. (the "Company") (Nasdaq
GM: NEBS),  the holding company for Enfield Federal Savings and Loan Association
(the  "Bank"),  reported  net income for the  quarter  ended  March 31,  2007 of
$196,000, or $0.04 per diluted share. For the corresponding quarter in the prior
fiscal year, the Company  reported net income of $313,000,  or $0.06 per diluted
share.  Net income for the twelve months ended March 31, 2007 was  $970,000,  or
$0.19 per diluted share as compared to $1.3 million, or $0.26 per diluted share,
for the prior year.

NET INTEREST AND DIVIDEND INCOME IMPROVES OVER PRIOR YEAR
Net interest and dividend income for the three and twelve months ended March 31,
2007 increased by $64,000 and $1.3 million,  respectively.  The increase for the
quarter and year were primarily due to increases in  interest-earning  assets of
$24.7 million and $39.2 million,  respectively,  partially offset by an increase
in the cost of funds due to the higher interest rate environment.  The Company's
net  interest  margin for the three and twelve  months  ended March 31, 2007 was
3.66% and 3.79%, respectively, compared to 3.91% and 3.87%, respectively, in the
year earlier periods.

TOTAL ASSETS AND DEPOSITS GROW
At March 31,  2007,  total  assets  were  $284.2  million,  an increase of $26.4
million  from March 31, 2006.  The increase in assets was caused  primarily by a
$50.3  million  increase  in net  loans,  partially  offset  by a $20.0  million
decrease   in  cash  and  cash   equivalents,   a  $2.8   million   decrease  in
available-for-sale  securities and a $2.3 million  decrease in  interest-bearing
time deposits  with other banks.  The increase in net loans was primarily due to
an increase of $28.3 million in one-to four-family residential mortgage loans, a
$12.7 million  increase in commercial real estate loans, a $7.2 million increase
in commercial loans and a $1.7 million increase in consumer loans. Cash and cash
equivalents decreased as these funds were used to fund the loan growth.

Total deposits were $181.7 million at March 31, 2007 and $169.0 million at March
31, 2006, a $12.6 million  increase.  The increase in deposits was due primarily
to an $11.8 million increase in money market  accounts,  a $6.6 million increase
in  certificate  of deposit  accounts  and a $1.9  million  increase in checking
accounts,  partially  offset by an $8.2  million  decrease in savings  accounts.
Securities sold under agreements to repurchase  increased $1.9 million from $7.3
million at March 31, 2006 to $9.2 million at March 31,  2007.  Federal Home Loan
Bank

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advances  increased $11.9 million to $33.6 million at March 31, 2007 compared to
$21.6  million at March 31, 2006.  The  increase in  repurchase  agreements  and
borrowings were used to fund loan growth.

PROVISION FOR LOAN LOSSES
The  provision for loan losses was $60,000 and $242,000 for the three and twelve
months ended March 31, 2007, respectively,  compared to $61,000 and $210,000 for
the three and twelve months ended March 31, 2007, respectively.

ASSET QUALITY
The Company's asset quality remained  favorable.  Non-performing  assets totaled
$824,000 at March 31, 2007  compared to $600,000 at March 31, 2006.  Charge-offs
were $1,000 for the twelve  months  ended March 31, 2007 and $7,000 for the same
period  last year.  The  allowance  for loan  losses was 0.94% of total loans at
March 31, 2007 compared to 1.09% of total loans at March 31, 2006.

NON-INTEREST EXPENSE INCREASES
Non-interest  expense for the quarter ended March 31, 2007 was $2.2 million,  an
increase of $219,000, from $2.0 million for the same quarter a year ago. For the
twelve months ended March 31, 2007,  non-interest expense increased $1.9 million
to $8.6 million  compared to $6.8 million for the year ago period.  The increase
in the three and twelve month periods reflect  additional  salaries and employee
benefits,  professional fees, and occupancy and equipment expense.  The increase
in occupancy and equipment expense for the quarter and twelve months ended March
31, 2007 was due to the Company  opening  additional  banking offices and moving
its  headquarters  and main retail office.  During the twelve months ended March
31, 2007, the Company recognized  approximately $203,000 of compensation expense
related to the expensing of stock  options in accordance  with SFAS 123 (revised
2004),  "Share-based  Payment."  In the prior year  period,  the Company did not
record any expense related to stock options as the implementation date was April
1, 2006.

Statements  contained in this news release,  which are not historical facts, are
forward-looking  statements  as that term is defined in the  Private  Securities
Litigation  reform Act of 1995. Such  forward-looking  statements are subject to
risks and  uncertainties,  which could cause actual results to differ materially
from those currently anticipated due to a number of factors,  which include, but
are not limited to, factors discussed in documents filed by the Company with the
Securities and Exchange Commission from time to time. Subject to applicable laws
and regulation,  the Company does not undertake - and specifically disclaims any
obligation - to publicly  release the results of any revisions which may be made
to any  forward-looking  statements to reflect events or circumstances after the
date  of  such  statements  or to  reflect  the  occurrence  of  anticipated  or
unanticipated events.

New England  Bancshares,  Inc. is  headquartered  in Enfield,  Connecticut,  and
operates Enfield Federal Savings and Loan Association with eight banking centers
servicing  the  communities  of Enfield,  Manchester,  Suffield,  East  Windsor,
Ellington and Windsor Locks. For more information  regarding the Bank's products
and services, please visit www.enfieldfederal.com.


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                               Statistical Summary
                                   (unaudited)
                 (dollars in thousands, except per share data)

Income Statement Data               Three Months Ended   Twelve Months Ended
                                         March 31,             March 31,
                                         ---------             ---------
                                     2007       2006       2007       2006
                                     ----       ----       ----       ----
Net interest and dividend income   $  2,304   $  2,240   $  9,369   $  8,117
Provision for loan losses          $     60   $     61   $    242   $    210
Non-interest income                $    316   $    251   $    991   $    835
Non-interest expense               $  2,211   $  1,992   $  8,643   $  6,789
Net income                         $    196   $    313   $    970   $  1,309
Earnings per share(1) :
   Basic                           $   0.04   $   0.06   $   0.20   $   0.27
   Diluted                         $   0.04   $   0.06   $   0.19   $   0.26

Dividend per share(1)              $   0.03   $   0.02   $   0.12   $   0.08

Balance Sheet Data             March 31, 2007    March 31, 2006
                               --------------    --------------
Total assets                       $284,158         $257,799
Total loans, net                   $198,447         $148,113
Loan loss reserve                  $  1,875         $  1,636
Total deposits                     $181,675         $169,044
Repurchase agreements              $  9,177         $  7,325
FHLB advances                      $ 33,587         $ 21,642
Total equity                       $ 57,266         $ 56,821
Book value per share(2)            $  11.65         $  11.45

Key Ratios                   Three Months Ended    Twelve Months Ended
                                 March 31,              March 31,
                                 ---------              ---------
                              2007       2006       2007       2006
                              ----       ----       ----       ----
Return on average assets      0.29%      0.50%      0.36%      0.57%
Return on average equity      1.39%      2.23%      1.70%      3.63%
Net interest margin           3.66%      3.91%      3.79%      3.87%

(1) Earnings per share and dividends per share have been adjusted to reflect the
2.3683 shares of common stock  exchanged for each share of existing stock in the
second-step conversion that was completed on December 28, 2005.

(2) Calculation  excludes  unallocated ESOP shares and unvested  incentive stock
grants. Including these shares in the calculation causes book value per share to
decrease to $10.71 and $10.63 at March 31, 2007 and March 31, 2006.

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