ICE branches out with major new stop smoking contract
Building on its national reputation for behaviour change and social marketing, ICE has been appointed as an official provider of NHS stop smoking services.
ICE’s new Stop4Life service will be the flagship initiative for its newly formed Health and Lifestyle Services division, and will see the creation of 12 new full time jobs by the end of the year.
A team of stop smoking advisors will work in community clinics, offering one-to-one support to help clients reach the 12 week smoke free milestone. Using a mixture of innovative social marketing techniques, expert behaviour support and bespoke personal plans, the first quitters are set to enter the service in the West Midlands from the end of November.
Chief Executive, Stuart Jackson, says, “People are at the heart of everything we do and the Stop4Life project is a natural extension of our integrated approach to tackling health inequalities, supporting aspiration and wellbeing, and delivering lasting behaviour change.
“In fact, as far as we know, we’re the only organisation out there offering a truly end-to-end solution to tackle this key social challenge – encompassing research, social marketing, creative services and tailored face-to-face support accredited by the NHS. It’s all about delivering proven, measurable outcomes by taking a locally-led, nationally-shared approach; and then working and growing the team in each locality.”
The Stop4Life service will be managed out of ICE's new Coventry office, led by Simon Dudman, Director of Health and Lifestyle Services. He added, “We’re very excited about this latest opportunity to build on all of the learning and expertise we’ve developed in recent years, working alongside a range of public health teams and NHS stop smoking services. Stop4Life will be offering a really innovative and people-focused service, drawing on best practice as well as developing new and creative approaches to help people to kick the habit.”
John Forde, Acting Director of Public Health at NHS Coventry and Coventry City Council, said: “NHS Coventry welcomes new provider ICE Creates who will be joining Coventry’s stop smoking tariff scheme from November 2011 to further extend our stop smoking services to people who want to quit smoking but need some help.
“Since offering a new approach to the way stop smoking services are delivered throughout the city, we currently have nine different providers offering NHS help and support across Coventry to help them stop smoking. Giving up smoking is the single most important thing you can do to improve your health. Everyone has their own reasons for wanting to give up smoking. Whether it’s because of a desire to improve your own health, save money or to break free from the addiction to nicotine, it’s never too late to quit and the NHS is here to help.”
The Stop4Life project will complement ICE’s existing health and lifestyle initiatives tackling major social challenges, such as a successful alcohol behaviour change programme in Liverpool.
ENDS
Notes to Editors:
For further information or to arrange an interview with Simon Dudman, please contact:
Emma Camden, 0151 647 4700 / emma.camden@icecreates.com
For more about ICE, visit: www.icecreates.com
‹
Back
The Capital, 39 Old Hall Street, Liverpool
L3 9PP
Telephone: +44(0)151 600 2900
Email:
info@liverpoolvision.co.uk