Statistics on NHS Stop Smoking Services in England - April 2020 to March 2021

This section of the report presents information on the number of quit attempts and self-reported quit rates by a range of demographic variables.

Number of quit attempts

A higher number of females attempted to quit in 2020/21 (103,027) than males (75,788).

Self-reported quit rate

Males had a higher self-reported quit rate than females (62% and 57% respectively) but similar CO validated quit rates (3% for both).

Number of quit attempts

There was no clear pattern by age.  The largest number of quit attempts came from the 45-59 year old age group (32% of all attempts).

Self-reported quit rate

The self-reported quit rate increased with age, exceeding 60% for those aged 45 and over.

Number of quit attempts

Of those setting a quit date in 2020/21, 153,311 (86%) were of a White ethnicity.

The next most represented ethnicity was Asian or Asian British, with 7,030 (4%) of those setting a quit date.

Self-reported quit rate

The self-reported quit rate by ethnic category ranged from 56% for 'Mixed' to 59% 'White' and 'Asian or Asian British'.

Male/female split by ethnicity

The proportion of those setting a quit date by gender varies across ethnic groups. For 'Asian or Asian British', 73% of those attempting to set a quit date were males. For 'White', males made up just 41% of those setting a quit date.

Number of quit attempts

Socio-economic classification has been determined by smoking cessation advisors using a methodology adapted for use in NHS Smoking Cessation Services. For more details  about socio-economic classification, please consult the Notes & Definitions section of Stop Smoking Services Q4 2020/21 data tables.

The largest number of quit attempts came from 'Routine and manual occupations' (48,623). The next most represented group, with 30,345 quit attempts, was 'Never worked or unemployed for over 1 year'.

Self-reported quit rate

The self-reported quit rates varies across socio-economic groups, ranging from 80% for 'Prisoner' to 53% for ‘Full time students’ and 'Never worked or unemployed for over 1 year'.

Number of quit attempts

North West had the highest number of quit attempts (27,985) and West Midlands had the lowest (11,693).

Self-reported quit rate

The self-reported quit rate was highest in Yorkshire and Humber (71%) and lowest in South West (53%).

Number of quit attempts

18,087 pregnant women set a quit date in 2020/21. This is a 31% increase on 2019/20 (13,799) and is the highest number since 2014/15 (18,887).

Self-reported quit rate

The self-reported quit rate was 48% which is the highest rate in the time series. However, the CO validated quit rate dropped from 54% in 2019/20 to 4% in 2020/21.