Smokers urged 'it's never too late to quit' - as city records its lowest smoking rates

Recent figures from the Office for National Statistics show that the proportion of adult smokers in Sunderland fell to 12.3 in 2023 and remains just slightly higher than the North East average of 11 per cent and national average of 11.6 percent.

Councillor Kelly Chequer, Deputy Leader of Sunderland City Council and Cabinet Member for Health, Wellbeing and Safer Communities, said: "Historically Sunderland has had high rates of smoking and smoking continues to be one of the leading causes of premature death so it's brilliant to see our smoking rates continuing to fall.

"While there's still some way to go, the latest figures show the steady progress being made in our work to improve the health and wellbeing of our residents.

"Cutting the rate of smoking is a key priority of our Healthy City Plan and as a council we're committed to getting smoking rates down to 5 per cent by 2030 as we continue to work in partnership with Fresh, the NHS and councils across the region.

"Quitting smoking can be difficult but it's also one of the best things you can do for your health, not to mention your wallet or your overall sense of wellbeing. There's a lot of support for anyone who wants to quit and Stoptober is a great time to give up.

"Research suggests that smokers who complete the 28 day Stoptober Challenge are five times more likely to stay quit for good.

"So I'd urge anyone thinking of quitting to take advantage of all the support that's out there and contact the Sunderland Stop Smoking Service, especially as smokers can now swap their cigarettes for a free vape to help them quit, with the help and support of an experienced stop smoking advisor."

While many people try to quit smoking with willpower alone, it's much easier to go smokefree with the right help.

Visit FreshQuit.co.uk for lots of useful advice and information on reasons to quit, how to make quitting less stressful and what help is available to support you to give quitting a go this October.

Sunderland smokers can contact the city's specialist stop smoking service for free advice and support, including one to one support from an experienced stop smoking advisor and stop smoking tools such as nicotine replacement products. The service is also part of the national Swap to Stop programme.

This means that smokers aged 18 and over can swap their cigarettes for a free vape alongside the one to one support to help them to quit. Evidence shows that swapping to a vape and getting specialist help and advice increases a smokers chance of quitting for good.

To contact Sunderland Stop Smoking Service, call them on 0800 169 9913 or visit www.sunderlandstopsmokingservice.co.uk