This consultation will be live until 23 April 2018.
The consultation
Ealing Council is consulting on a proposal to discontinue the local Stop Smoking service contract from April 2019.
This is in order to achieve the savings needed as a result of the government reducing Ealing’s public health ring-fenced grant allocation by £641,000 in 2018/19 and a further £642,000 by 2020. In addition, the number of people quitting smoking through Stop Smoking services has been declining locally and nationally over recent years. The evidence shows that smokers are increasingly less likely to access traditional face-to-face services.
Smoking prevalence in Ealing has been steadily falling over the last ten years and is now at its lowest level. This fall is likely to have been driven by the smoking ban, e-cigarettes and changing societal attitudes towards smoking as a result of ongoing advertising on the harmful effects of smoking.
Smokers wishing to find help to stop smoking will be able to access alternative resources and support through GPs, pharmacies, Smokefree NHS support services, other national, charitable or commercial smoking cessation resources.
Your views
We would like the views of users of the Stop Smoking service, local residents, service providers, and other stakeholders about this proposal. Please read the full consultation document and the draft equality impact assessment (EIA) before completing a short survey to have your say.
This consultation will be live from 19 February until 23 April 2018.
Consultation event
A consultation event to discuss the proposal will take place on Wednesday 21 March from 1-3pm at:
Queens Hall
Ealing Town Hall
Uxbridge road
London
W5 2BY
Please reserve a place if you’d like to attend the event. Places are limited and will be allocated on a first come first served basis.
What happens next?
Results of this consultation will be presented to the council’s cabinet to consider at its July meeting or later. The decision of the cabinet will be published and subject to ‘call in’ for a period thereafter. If there are no objections, the proposal will go ahead and an implementation date will be agreed.
Further information
For any help, such as requesting a paper copy, or queries regarding this consultation please email chauhans@ealing.gov.uk and quote ‘Consultation on Stop Smoking service’.