• Wirral is most interested in quitting smoking, with the highest number of smokers setting a quit date. 

• Stockton-on-Tees and Hackney are the second and third most interested in quitting smoking.

• Warrington has the highest success rate for quitting smoking at 84.24%.

With 1 October marking the start of the UK’s national quit smoking campaign, Stoptober, a new analysis has revealed the areas of England most interested in giving up smoking.

Online vape store Go Smoke Free analysed NHS Stop Smoking services data for 152 areas in England between April 2022 and March 2023. It considered which areas were most interested in quitting smoking, as determined by the number of people who had set a quit date per 100,000 smokers in each local authority. 

It also considered which areas were most successful at quitting smoking, as ascertained by the number of people who reported that they had quit during a four-week follow-up.

The research found that Wirral has the highest number of smokers looking to quit, with 8,299 out of every 100,000 smokers in the Merseyside borough reporting to have set a quit date. Wirral is the first of four areas in the North West of England that feature in the top ten for a desire to quit smoking. 

Areas with the highest interest in quitting smoking

Stockton-on-Tees ranks second for interest in quitting, with 7,564 of every 100,000 smokers in the North East borough setting a quit date. 

In third place is Hackney. One of four London local authorities in the top ten, 7,551 of every 100,000 smokers in Hackney set a date to stop smoking. 

Halton comes in fourth place with 7,459 smokers in 100,000 in the North West borough expressing a desire to stop smoking and setting a quit date to that effect. 

Kensington and Chelsea ranks fifth, with 7,331 of every 100,000 smokers in the royal borough wanting to quit. Another London borough, Camden, ranks sixth, with 7,326 of every 100,000 smokers setting a date to kick the habit. 

Southend-on-Sea ranks seventh, with 7,264 out of 100,000 smokers in the resort town setting a date to quit. Warrington has 7,180 out of 100,000 smokers setting a quit date and ranks eighth on the list for a desire to quit. 

Sefton ranks ninth, with 6,966 per 100,000 smokers setting a quit date while Westminster ranks tenth, with 6,822 smokers out of 100,000 setting a quit date. 

Enfield is the area with the least desire to stop smoking, with only 109 smokers per 100,000 in the London borough reportedly setting a quit date. 

Areas with the highest success rate with quitting smoking

Warrington was found to be the most successful at quitting smoking in England, with an 84.24% success rate. 1,026 out of 1,218 smokers who set a quit date through NHS Stop Smoking Services, reported that they had stopped smoking at the four-week follow-up.

Darlington ranks second with an 82.07% success rate at quitting, the equivalent of 119 out of 145 smokers reporting to have kicked the habit at a four-week follow-up. An impressive 31.03% of those setting a quit date, were confirmed to be smoke-free when measured by carbon monoxide in the blood at follow-up.

The first of several local authorities within Yorkshire and the Humber that made the top ten, North East Lincolnshire ranks third, with a success rate of 78.29%, or 404 successful quitters out of 516 smokers setting a quit date. 

In fourth place is York, with a success rate of 74.35%. The metropolitan borough of Knowsley ranks fifth, with a quit rate of 71.44%.

Rotherham ranks in sixth place with 70.78% of smokers who set a quit date reporting that they had quit, and Doncaster closely follows in seventh place, with a success rate of 70.03%.

Two South East local authorities, Wokingham and Bracknell Forest rank in eighth and ninth place with success rates of 69.88% and 69.22% respectively.

Nottingham rounds out the top ten with a success rate of 68.69%.

Isles of Scilly reported the lowest success rate when giving up smoking at just 15.38%, although the number of people attempting to quit through NHS services was found to be just 13 residents.

Enfield has the second-lowest success rate at 19.23%. Only 10 out of 52 people setting a quit date in the London borough reported that they had quit at the four-week follow-up.

North Tyneside had the third lowest success rate (21.48%) followed by Dorset (26.47%) and West Sussex (26.66%).

A spokesperson for Go Smoke Free commented:

“176,566 people in England attempted to quit smoking through NHS stop smoking services between 2022 and 2023, with an average success rate of 54%, at a four-week follow up.

“Warrington’s success rate of 84% is particularly commendable, however, it is important to acknowledge the determination and commitment of every individual across England who has sought support to quit smoking, regardless of where they are in their journey to going smoke-free.”