Suffolk Tobacco Control Alliance

We are a group of professionals who are committed to tackling smoking in Suffolk through:

• good promotional work
• changing policies
• supporting people to quit smoking
• disrupting the illicit tobacco trade.

We are passionate about making sure people have the right to be healthy and all have a part to play towards a smoke free Suffolk.

Our vision in Suffolk is to create a smokefree generation. 

View Suffolk's tobacco control profile, includes:

• smoking prevalence in adults
• smoking prevalence in young people
• smoking related mortality
• smoking related ill health
• impact of smoking, smoking quitters

For more information on smoking facts and data in Suffolk take a look at the Public Health Joint Strategic Needs Assessment page on smoking.

Purpose of the Alliance  

The Suffolk Tobacco Control Alliance aims to:

• To diminish the roles of tobacco and smoking in Suffolk, making for safer and healthier communities as endorsed by the Suffolk Health and Wellbeing Board (HWBB)
• To provide a platform for partners to advocate, coordinate and monitor activities that contribute to this agenda
• To serve as a forum for information exchange and a voice for tobacco control in Suffolk

Our objectives

In broad terms, these are:

• Prevention: Creating an environment where young people choose not to smoke
• Protection: Protecting people from second-hand smoke and supporting tobacco control interventions
• Cessation: Supporting and enabling people to quit smoking

Priority people and places we are working with

• Pregnant mothers. In 2016/17 10.2% of women in Suffolk were smoking at time of delivery
• People with mental health conditions. In 2014/15 38.6% of adults with serious mental illness were smoking
• People with long term conditions which is being addressed through Public Health's Healthy Hospitals work and Clinical Commissioning Groups acute care contract arrangements
• Routine and Manual workers. In 2017 23.6% of Suffolk's routine and manual occupations smoked
• Areas of Suffolk with prevalence of smoking: Ipswich, Forest Heath, Waveney

Public Health England data

Stoptogether  - Stop Smoking, quit together. 

Our overarching message is to encourage smokers to quit with friends, family and get support from non-smokers and support services to quit. This message runs through all our priority group campaigns. 

Take it Outside 

Raises awareness of health and safety risks of smoking in the home, encourages smokers to take their tobacco products outside.

Smoking in Pregnancy

Encouraging pregnant women, the fathers, partners, friends and family to seek support to quit smoking.

Routine and Manual workers 

An estimated 1 in 4 people in routine and manual occupations smoked, compared with 1 in 10 people in managerial and professional occupations (Public Health England 2018). We aim to increase manual and routine workers awareness of smoking cessation services in Suffolk. 

Illicit Tobacco

• Illegal Tobacco - what is the real cost?
• Report anyone selling illegal tobacco to Suffolk Trading Standards by calling 03454 040506.