Visit to Swan House, Bridlington

19 April, 2018

The group of men and women who first met whilst attending a weekly stop smoking walk-in session organised by the Hull & East Riding Stop Smoking Service at the West Hill Community Centre in Bridlington have now set up their own support group and are keen to encourage others to join them.

Whilst taking part in the weekly walk-in sessions members of the group decided to get together after the sessions to talk about their experiences and to share hints and tips on how best to cope with the cravings and day to day challenges that giving up smoking brings. This additional support proved so useful that members started to meet regularly and the group quickly started to grow.  And it is not just those trying to give up who lend their support, a number of those who have successfully quit using the Hull &East Riding Stop Smoking Service programme also attend the sessions to help others.

Kyra Willis stopped smoking in October last year and believes this is down to the support she received. She said: “Attending the walk-in sessions was great because you got one-to-one help from the stop smoking specialist and were given access to a wide range of helpful tools including free NRT products including patches. What made it even more successful was the additional support members of the group gave me in our regular get togethers. We could turn to each other when we were finding it hard and talk about how best to cope. Since I’ve stopped smoking I’ve carried on attending our meetings so I can offer advice and help to anyone else who is trying to quit – it only seems fair as it worked so well for me.”

Cec Lindley who runs the West Hill Community Centre in the town has been overwhelmed by the enthusiasm shown by the local community and is encouraging other local communities to get together to make a difference.  She said: “When the walk-in sessions started on a Thursday morning in October 2009 we had no idea how successful they would become.  Now four months on we’ve helped 15 people stop smoking, despite being closed for Christmas and the bad weather, and want to share our success story with others.

“The professional help and advice offered by the Hull & East Riding Stop Smoking Service has been invaluable and no-one could have done it without them, but I like to think that we’ve proved that by working together as a community we can make an even bigger impact. My husband and grandson who is only 16 years old have now joined the sessions and I’m delighted that they are able to receive the support they need to give up smoking.  My husband’s health was suffering before and he’s already feeling much better. We’ve also managed to save lots of money which is a fantastic incentive for anyone who is ready to stop smoking.”

The Hull & East Riding Stop Smoking Service is run by City Health Care Partnership (NHS Hull Provider Services) and is responsible for delivering over 40 walk-in sessions across the region where people can turn up with no appointment. To find your nearest walk-in session call 0800 9155959 or visit www.readytostopsmoking.co.uk . You can also text ‘QUIT’ to 81800.