Local Stop Smoking Services

Smoking remains the leading cause of preventable death and disease in England and is one of the most significant factors that impacts upon health inequalities and ill health, particularly cancer, coronary heart disease and respiratory disease.

According to research published in 2017, treating smoking-related illness is estimated to cost the NHS £2.6 billion a year, with the wider economic costs reaching over £13 billion once factors such as lost productivity, tobacco litter and smoking-related house fires are considered.

Reducing smoking prevalence therefore remains a key local public health priority and a national focus.

Local Stop Smoking Services offer support to help people quit smoking. This can include intensive support through group therapy or one-to-one support. The support is designed to be widely accessible within the local community and is provided by trained personnel, such as specialist smoking cessation advisers and trained nurses and pharmacists.

NHS England has a statutory obligation to keep collections under review on an ongoing basis. As such a review date must be set at which point NHS England will review the continuing need for this collection.

Funding is provided by the Department of Health and Social Care to implement Local SSS through Public Health grants.

Additional funding has been made available for smoking cessation specifically.

NHS England collects data submitted by local authorities on the Stop Smoking Services provided. This aggregate data is published by NHS England on a quarterly basis to inform the public, service providers, and the Department of Health and Social Care about the progress of the service. The data is published on the NHS England webpages, and the Department of Health and Social Care webpages. The data collection and publication follow the financial year (1 April – 31March).

• local authorities, and any bodies established with the function of arranging for the provision of Stop Smoking Services as commissioned by the Department of Health and Social Care using Public Health grants or additional smoking cessation funding
• any system supplier commissioned to collate data on behalf of a local authority

NHS England has been directed by the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care under section 254 of the Health and Social Care Act 2012.

Data is submitted on a quarterly basis. Submission is at least 42 days after each financial quarter ends. There are 3 resubmission periods for quarters 1 to 3 prior to the quarter 4 collection. 

More information about the collection is available.