Sheffield Stop Smoking service wins award for No Smoking Day
Sheffield Stop Smoking Service picked up first prize in the No Smoking Day Organiser of the Year Awards 2008.
The service won the ‘achievement in the local media’ category; outshining services across the country with an innovative idea to encourage people to stop smoking.
On 12th March (No Smoking Day 2008), Sheffield Stop Smoking staff demonstrated the damage smoking causes to the skin with age progression software at Howden House.
Maggie Milne, specialist stop smoking adviser, quit smoking 8 years ago through the service. She was first to use the software which aged a photo of her face to show the extra wrinkles and damage she would have in later life if she had continued to smoke.
The public were then invited to try it out for themselves with shocking results. Maggie said: “It was amazing to see what smoking actually does to the skin. A smoker aged 50 will look so much older and wrinkly than a non smoker of the same age. Everyone who took part said they really don’t want to look like their age progressed image.”
The award board was impressed by the coverage the age progression event at Howden House received and decided the Sheffield stop smoking service were worthy of first place and the £50 prize to spend on materials for the 2009 campaign.
Maggie was invited to speak at the Stop Smoking Day’s Yorkshire Launch which took place in Leeds on 10th November.
Dan Tickle, Chief Executive of No Smoking Day said: “We are thrilled Sheffield Stop Smoking Service is coming to share what they did for 2008. We feel that their event will inspire their peers to think outside the box and help to promote Stop Smoking Services as well as No Smoking Day.”
If you would like help to quit smoking please contact the Sheffield Stop Smoking Service’s free-phone helpline on 0800 068 4490
