The cash injection is the largest allocation to a local authority from Whitehall’s £70million 'Stopping the start' funding pot to help the UK become smokefree by 2030.
Under the grant arrangements, further annual funding to help Kent smokers quit will also follow from the Department of Health and Social Care for an additional four years, between 2025 and 2029.
Speaking at today’s Health Reform and Public Health Cabinet Committee, KCC Public Health leaders hailed the extra help to target Kent’s and Britain’s biggest cause of preventable death.
Smoking rates continue to fall nationally and locally. Less than one-in-nine people (11.6%) now smoke in the county, compared to around one-in-five people (20.2%) in 2011.
But tobacco is still responsible for over 60,000 deaths in England a year. As well as increasing the risk of life-threatening health conditions such as dementia, Alzheimer's, high blood pressure and respiratory disease, it is also the cause of 27% of all cancer fatalities.
Smoking is also expensive, affects others’ health and is highest among groups and communities who face inequalities such as low income, poor mental health and drug and alcohol addiction.
“This additional money will significantly increase our funding available to tackle smoking – enabling us to increase services and support to help people quit”
Kent County Council Cabinet Member for Public Health, Dan Watkins, said: "Smoking remains the leading single cause of avoidable death, disease and disability and disproportionately affects our most vulnerable residents.
"It’s actually so harmful that 85% of smokers and ex-smokers regret ever picking up a cigarette in the first place and struggle to stop because of an addiction they don’t want.
“This additional money will significantly increase our funding available to tackle smoking – enabling us to increase services and support to help people quit. It’s a game-changing investment and will help save lives.”
“We're excited to receive the biggest local authority grant and looking forward to working with our healthcare partners and others to bolster local services and interventions to help Kent’s remaining 167,000 residents who still smoke to stop”
KCC Director of Public Health, Dr Anjan Ghosh, added: "We're excited to receive the biggest local authority grant and looking forward to working with our healthcare partners and others to bolster local services and interventions to help Kent’s remaining 167,000 residents who still smoke to stop.
"This includes rolling out a Swap-to-Stop scheme with Kent Community NHS Foundation Trust to help adult smokers switch from cigarettes to less toxic vapes. Vapes are a useful aid to help adult smokers quit but they are not risk free so if you don’t smoke, don’t vape.”
With smokers seeking professional help to quit three times more likely to stop than those who rely on willpower alone, anyone wanting to stub out cigarettes is encouraged to contact the free One You Kent smokefree service.
Find out more and fill out an easy self-referral form at www.kent.gov.uk/smokefree or Text ‘QUIT’ to 87023, or call 0300 123 1220, to speak to a friendly adviser.
