Data and Research

The North East has seen the largest fall in smoking prevalence since 2005 when regional working in the North East began through Fresh, with smoking having fallen from 29% in 2005 to 11% in 2023.

Fresh has a busy strand of work studying insight, data and latest behaviours around smoking and across the North East to shape priorities and guide campaigns.

We carry out qualitative and quantitative work around attitudes towards tobacco, with a particular focus on exploring public support and motivation for behaviour change.

 

Insights

Fresh monitors a variety of national and regional data sources and insights in terms of smoking rates and attitudes towards quitting.

An independent survey from Fresh of over 1,300 smokers across the North East carried out in July 2024 found

  • 61% say their life would be better if they didn’t smoke
  • 63% are worried about the health risks of smoking
  • 72% say they wish they’d never started smoking
  • 41% say they smoke to cope with stress – but evidence shows quitting smoking is proven to make people feel calmer within a few weeks

Public opinion

We monitor North East public opinion and reflect this back to stakeholders to show the strong levels of support for “making smoking history. The North East has seen some of the highest support in the country for measures to reduce smoking. See our Advocacy page. 

78% of NE adults support the vision of 5% of fewer people smoking by the year 203 and only 7% of adults in the North East think the Government is doing too much to reduce smoking. YouGov Smokefree Survey 2023

We also develop data-led infographics reports for localities to support local discussions and reach a broad range of stakeholders.

Illicit Tobacco

Illegal tobacco plays a key role in exacerbating harms across the North East, getting young smokers hooked on tobacco and making it harder for smokers to quit. Fresh has tracked the size of the illicit market in the North East every two years since 2009. These are the headline results of the 2025 survey:

 

 

 

North East smoking prevalence since 1998

Fresh have worked with colleagues at University College London to model a trajectory to achieve the national ambition of less than 5% smoking prevalence by 2030 and will monitor progress across the region.

Further data reports

For more detailed data reports at national level visit:

Action on Smoking and Health to find detailed research reports on many aspects of tobacco control – from the tobacco industry to smoking in pregnancy

ASH local toolkit: ASH also have an excellent Local Toolkit with materials for local public health professionals and councillors involved in tobacco control – including the Ready Reckoner which gives a detailed breakdown of the cost of smoking to local areas.

Local Tobacco Control Profiles   provide a snapshot of the extent of tobacco use, tobacco related harm, and measures being taken to reduce this harm at a local level. These profiles have been designed to help local government and health services to assess the effect of tobacco use on their local populations. They will inform commissioning and planning decisions to tackle tobacco use and improve the health of local communities.

Smoking Habits in the UK from Office for National Statistics provides a breakdown of people who smoke in the UK including the proportion of people who smoke, demographic breakdowns, changes over time and use of e-cigarettes use.

The Smoking, Drinking and Drug use among young people in England survey helps central and local government to better understand young people’s behaviours and to develop policies, plan services and new initiatives and to monitor and evaluate their impact.