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Smoke-Free Universities

Making Our Spaces Smoke-free

We’re working with universities across Wales to make their campuses smokefree, creating healthier spaces for students, staff, and visitors. By reducing smoking on campuses, we can protect health, encourage quitting, and create cleaner, greener places to learn, live, and work.



What We're Calling For?

University campuses across the country are a hub for young people to learn and socialise as well as providing jobs for thousands of staff. Through our smokefree universities initiative we are encouraging universities across Wales to make their campuses smokefree. This will improve the health of staff and students and reduce smoking-related litter.

Overall smoking rates are declining in Wales but there’s still work to be done in when it comes to those aged 18-24. Smoking among young people aged 16 – 24 remains at a high level. The younger the age someone starts smoking, the greater the harm is likely to be.

  • Smokefree Outdoor Spaces

  • Introduce policies to prohibit smoking in all outdoor areas across campuses, ensuring clean air for everyone.

  • Support For Smokers

  • Provide resources to help students and staff quit smoking, making quitting accessible and achievable.

  • Tobacco-Free Campuses

  • Ban the sale and promotion of tobacco products and sever ties with the tobacco industry to maintain ethical integrity.

Introduce policies to prohibit smoking in all outdoor areas across campuses, ensuring clean air for everyone.

Provide resources to help students and staff quit smoking, making quitting accessible and achievable.

Ban the sale and promotion of tobacco products and sever ties with the tobacco industry to maintain ethical integrity.

FAQs About Smokefree Campuses

Vapes, also known as e-cigarettes, are increasingly popular as smoking alternatives. Universities can decide whether to include vaping in their smokefree policies. While vaping is less harmful than smoking, it is not risk-free, and its use can normalise smoking behaviours, particularly among young people. Our toolkit offers guidance to help institutions make informed decisions about incorporating vaping into their smokefree policies.

Enforcement of smokefree policies should focus on education and positive reinforcement rather than punishment. Universities should train staff to politely remind individuals of the policy and offer information on quitting support, like Help Me Quit.

For repeated breaches, a graduated approach is effective: starting with verbal reminders, followed by written notices if needed. Visible and clear signage, coupled with consistent communication about the benefits of a smokefree campus, helps encourage compliance and reduces the need for enforcement actions.

Universities can play a crucial role in helping smokers quit by providing accessible support and resources. Directing individuals to services like Help Me Quit, the free NHS service in Wales, ensures they have access to tailored quitting options, including one-to-one support, group sessions, and nicotine replacement therapies. Promoting these services through university health centres, orientation programs, and awareness campaigns can encourage more quit attempts. Institutions should also consider offering on-campus smoking cessation workshops and free resources to create a supportive environment for those ready to quit.

Download Our FREE Resources

Our Smokefree Universities Toolkit offers practical guidance to help universities implement comprehensive smokefree policies.

Support Our Work

Support ASH Wales’ efforts to create a smokefree generation. A donation, big or small, helps us deliver campaigns, resources, and initiatives that protect young people and improve public health across Wales.