Evaluating Effectiveness of No Smoking Day
No Smoking Day has always ensured its work is evidence based, and we employ the highest standards of research to all aspects of our work, ensuring we remain effective, efficient and good value for money.
Evaluation at a local level
Evaluation of local No Smoking Day activities is very important to us. We ask all our local organisers to tell us what they did for the Day, so we can see who organised the most exciting, unusual and successful events. We then share the information with other organisers in order to spread best practice and continually improve the delivery of No Smoking Day events.
Evaluation of the media
Each year No Smoking Day records all media coverage about smoking and the references to the Day. We use this work to better understand how our mass media activities can act as a trigger to those wanting to quit, and can encourage smokers to seek out the support that is available.
Evaluation with the public
Every year we ask a random sample of the public questions about No Smoking Day to find out if they were aware of the Day and if they took part. We ask questions about the same issues each year so we can make comparisons and spot trends year on year.
No Smoking Day achieves consistently high levels of public awareness and participation, making us one of the longest running and most effective health campaigns in the UK.
Evaluation of the media and public can be found in the 2008 Campaign report.
2008 Campaign Report.pdf (272K)
Long term impact
About every three years, No Smoking Day carries out an in-depth three-month evaluation of the Day's effectiveness in helping smokers who want to stop. This data provides us with a longer-term picture of how effective No Smoking Day is in helping smokers to stop beyond the Day.
Thanks to No Smoking Day, tens of thousands of smokers will quit each year.
To see more:
nsd22yearson.pdf (203K)
Cost effectiveness
In 2004 the British Medical Journal published an article that examined the costs of public health measures to help smokers to stop. The cost effectiveness of No Smoking Day was calculated to be £26 per Quality Life Year Saved (QALY).
Comparisons show No Smoking Day to be one of the most cost effective interventions to help smokers quit; the same research found costs per QALY of £658 for using Nicotine Replacement Therapy and Brief Advice, and £192 for community health programmes.