Sheffield’s Stop Smoking Service wins prestigious national award
NHS Sheffield’s Stop Smoking Service is runner up in the 2009 No Smoking Day Event Organiser of the Year Award.
The No Smoking Day Event Organiser of the Year Awards is the charity’s way of recognizing and rewarding the creativity, determination and resourcefulness of the many people across the UK who organise events in support of the campaign, which this year took place on Wednesday 11 March.
No Smoking Day’s President Duncan Bannatyne said: “Congratulations to Sheffield’s Stop Smoking Service for organising such a creative, effective and award- winning No Smoking Day event. The 2009 No Smoking Day campaign saw many fantastic events happening across the UK and we had a more entries for the awards than ever before. So Sheffield’s achievement is therefore all the more impressive”.
Claire Holden the NHS Sheffield Stop Smoking Service Manager said: “We are delighted to receive this award. It’s a great acknowledgment to the service and all the advisers who were involved in the innovative event – our city centre firewalk”
This year’s theme ‘take the first step, acknowledged that for people who decided to give up smoking on National No Smoking Day the date will be the first step towards a healthier future. Sheffield’s Stop Smoking Service invited quitters to take their first step by taking part in a ‘fire walk’ to mark the occasion of which 11 people were brave enough to take part.
Similarities were drawn from the task of quitting smoking and walking on fire; In order to walk across the burning hot coals, the participants were first given a motivational lesson to enable them to gain a sense of focus, strength and determination – all the elements needed to help quit smoking.
No Smoking Day 2009 proved to be one of the most successful in its 26 year history, with research showing that one in ten smokers made a quit attempt on the Day, saving lives right across the UK and helping people escape the destructive grip of tobacco once and for all. Next year’s No Smoking Day will take place Wednesday, 10 March 2010.
