Record numbers quit smoking in Rotherham
Record numbers of Rotherham smokers are kicking the habit, with expectant mothers offered up to £400 in shopping vouchers to remain smoke-free.
But despite achieving one of England’s highest quit rates, the borough is still expected to miss the Government’s ambition for fewer than five per cent of adults to smoke by 2030.
An estimated 28,800 adults in Rotherham smoked in 2024, representing 13.5 per cent of the population compared with 10.4 per cent nationally.
Although that has fallen from 19.4 per cent in 2014, council officials warned there was “still plenty of work” to do.
During 2025/26, 1,754 people set a date to stop smoking and 1,212 successfully quit, the highest numbers recorded locally since 2016/17.
The results gave Rotherham the sixth-highest successful quit rate among 153 English local authorities.
Amelia Thorp, Rotherham Council’s public health specialist, told the Health and Wellbeing Board today (September 2): “It’s the highest number that we’ve had locally.”
She said the results reflected work by community stop-smoking advisers and specialist services at Rotherham NHS Foundation Trust and Rotherham Doncaster and South Humber NHS Foundation Trust.
Results were particularly strong among pregnant women, with 91 per cent of those setting a quit date successfully stopping, the service’s highest rate in more than a decade.
Ms Thorp said the women who continued to smoke during pregnancy were now more likely to have complex needs, making the result “a real credit to the service”.
Expectant mothers can receive up to £400 in high-street vouchers after carbon-monoxide tests confirm they have remained smoke-free during and after pregnancy.
Since January, a partner, relative or close friend quitting alongside them has also been eligible for up to £100.
Ms Thorp said quitting with somebody close to the expectant mother was “more likely to create success”.
Medication helped 285 people stop smoking, while 262 quit using vapes supplied through the national Swap to Stop programme. Rotherham intends to continue offering vapes as a quitting aid for adults.
However, officials acknowledged a growing tension between using vapes to help smokers quit and preventing their use by children.
The latest school survey found 95 per cent of pupils reported never smoking, compared with 78 per cent who said they had never vaped.
New guidance has been issued to schools, staff training is being rolled out and a dedicated children and young people’s worker is being introduced to help young people reduce or stop vaping.
Work to tackle illegal tobacco, vapes and underage sales is also being hampered by staffing pressures.
“Progress has been a challenge due to the limited capacity in the Trading Standards team,” Ms Thorp said.
The report warned unregulated products were often linked to organised criminal activity and said further investment was needed to deliver the council’s enforcement plans fully.
The board noted progress against Rotherham’s tobacco-control plan and approved an updated position statement on vaping.