Greater Manchester is a metropolitan county in the North West of England, created in 1974 and comprising ten metropolitan boroughs including the City of Manchester, Salford, Trafford, and Stockport. Home to around 2.8 million people, it forms the core of the Northern Powerhouse initiative and is the UK's largest urban area outside London. Greater Manchester is celebrated for its industrial heritage, world-renowned football clubs, a thriving arts and music scene, and a rapidly growing tech and life sciences economy.