BURY Council is pushing forward plans to give full council tax exemption for care leavers.

The council was encouraged to play the role of a ‘corporate parent’ in the Government’s Care Leavers strategy set out in July 2016. Bury Council is particularly keen to use their powers to exempt care leavers from council tax to relieve financial stress.

Councillor Eamonn O’Brien, cabinet member for Finance and Housing, said: “For many Care Leavers their lives have already involved a lot of difficulty and uncertainty before they come to taking their first steps into an independent life.

“What we want to do is make sure they know that, while they may have left the Care system, there are still plenty of things we can do as a council to help make their lives easier.”

Councillor Rishi Shori, leader of Bury Council, said: “This will not affect a large number of people in the Borough, but by putting money back into the pockets of some of our most vulnerable residents, we hope to make a real difference to the next stage of their lives. This is about helping young people leaving care start their independent lives on the right financial foot.”