Let’s quit smoking together with free support this Stoptober!
Health and wellbeing01 October 2025
Stoptober is back, and the Director of Public Health is calling all North Northamptonshire's smokers to join hundreds of others who have successfully quit with 12 weeks of free support.
With waiting times for free tailored support at just one week, a fact quoted in the Director of Public Health's Report 2024/25, smokers could be seven days away from being smoke free - with better health and more money in their pocket. A lot more.
In North Northamptonshire 14.8% of adults smoke, which is higher than the national average. Figures amongst some groups are even higher, with manual workers, that figure rises to 21.8% and with people who have long term mental health conditions it is nearly 30%. We also know that the difference in life expectancy for individuals with serious mental health conditions is linked to the high prevalence of smoking.
Our Health and Wellbeing Strategy is a five-year plan for North Northamptonshire and smoking and vaping is one of these major priorities for the area. We are committed to supporting the Government’s target of becoming smoke free by 2030 and progress is already being felt across our communities.
Last year more than 1,600 residents set a quit date and 67% of those have been successful in quitting smoking. Our waiting times have dropped and are currently at just one week.
North Northamptonshire Council’s Stop Smoking Team offers:
- a dedicated stop smoking service, providing up to 12 weeks of free behavioural support
- tips and advice on how to stop smoking
- face to face or telephone appointments
- appointments available Monday to Friday across North Northamptonshire
- a free course of nicotine replacement therapy (NRT) which may include an e-cigarette starter kit and 12-week supply of e-liquid
All you have to do to start your stop smoking journey now is complete our online form or call us and we'll get back to you as soon as we can. You can also call us on 0300 126 5700 (option 2).
Quitting smoking is one of the best things you can do for your health. It remains the number one cause of preventable death in England. The good news is, if you quit smoking for 28 days, you are five times more likely to quit for good. Whilst going ‘cold turkey’ is a common way that people attempt to give up, quit attempts are often more successful when using quit smoking support.Jane Bethea, Director of Public Health, Communities and Leisure for North Northamptonshire
That is why this year’s Stoptober campaign is encouraging smokers to quit this October by exploring the free support available through the North Northamptonshire Council Stop Smoking Service. We want aspiring quitters to know that we have their back and by taking part in Stoptober, they are more likely to succeed. There’s a wide range of free quitting tools available through the service.
We have really strengthened our Stop Smoking Service here in North Northamptonshire. We have new staff, have expanded our face-to-face clinics to improve access across East Northamptonshire and added focused support in areas with the highest smoking rates such as Corby. We are also increasing our targeted support to those who are more likely to smoke or experience the effects of smoking. This includes pregnant women, those with mental health conditions and those who work in routine or manual jobs. This is making a real difference to the health of our local population.