Fallouts over Brexit and internal wranglings may have caused a central government go-slow in recent months but our town halls have shown they have the power to change lives.

This summer, councils across Greater Manchester have launched a number of projects aimed at helping some of the most vulnerable in our society.

From measures to help the homeless to a commitment to crackdown on modern slavery, local democracy has been highlighting how it can make a difference.

Here is a selection of some of the plans.

Care leavers exempt from council tax

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In Manchester, councillors have backed a scheme that will see care leavers exempt from council tax until they turn 25.

Last year the age for the policy was set at 21 but members have opted for the increase in a move that has been supported by the Children’s Society.

“Manchester’s care leavers are very much ‘our children’,” said Coun Carl Ollerhead, executive member for finance and human resources, at a recent meeting.

“As corporate parents, we have a duty and a moral responsibility to ensure that the steps they take into the adult world are supported and that we give them the help and guidance they need.

“Making sure we do this is one of the council’s key priorities and I hope our decision to exempt them from council tax until they turn 25 will at the very least help them with their finances as they find a place to live on their own.”

Ending 'period poverty' in Salford

A scheme in Salford will provide residents living in period poverty with vouchers supplied by a supermarket chain.

The council’s Assist programme aims to take pressure off the city’s food banks and provide users with more choice.

Recipients will be able to buy sanitary products from Aldi, the council said.

The donation came on the back of research that found 98pc of Salford’s female foodbank and crisis support service users ‘regularly’ go without proper sanitary protection.

And nearly half of the women surveyed by the council and Salford’s Citizens Advice said they had struggled to afford feminine hygiene products.

Deputy mayor Paula Boshell said: “Sanitary products are not luxury items – they are essential for women’s health and dignity and should be either freely available to women on low incomes or made truly affordable for them.”

Coun Kate Lewis, one of the elected members to have first raised the issue, added: “Having heard so many heart rending stories about what women and girls have experienced, I felt we must help them avoid the embarrassment of coping without decent sanitary products.”

Tackling modern slavery

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A council motion in Trafford aimed at cracking down on modern slavery received cross-party support.

Leader Andrew Western said the issue was not talked about as much as it should.

“Clearly we have a problem – and it’s not just in this country. I want to make it clear that this council will not procure services from any organisation that is involved in modern slavery practices,” the Labour leader said.

Conservative opposition leader Coun Sean Anstee said his party fully supported the motion.

And Coun Liz Patel encouraged councillors to look out for people who may have become victims.

“I feel as councillors we are uniquely positioned in our communities to support these vulnerable residents,” she said.

Cash boost to help integration of new residents

In Oldham, the council has been successful in a bid for lottery funding to help welcome asylum seekers and immigrants into the borough.

The £342k funding pot will help support the integration of new residents as the town hall says the area has experienced ‘significant demographic change’ and a high turnover of residents in recent years.

It will be used to promote ‘community cohesion’ and allow the authority to offer added language and translation services to new migrants and existing communities.

A full time outreach worker to support Roma communities in Oldham and a part-time asylum seeker and refugee outreach worker will also be taken on.

More support for homeless in Wigan

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Tackling homelessness has been high on the agenda in Wigan with a new approach - including two specialist hubs - on the verge of being signed off.

The hubs, in Wigan and Leigh town centres, will provide emergency accommodation with access to integrated support services.

It will ‘complement work undertaken at a GM level’ with mayor Andy Burnham having pledged to end rough sleeping by 2020.

The most important aspect of this is to prevent people from becoming homeless,” said deputy leader Keith Cunliffe.

“We will think about the many reasons behind homelessness; domestic violence, drugs, alcohol, mental health, and a range of different problems...we need the emergency accommodation but we need to start to address these reasons.”