Bracknell Forest Council has been recognised for the success of their Smokefreelife Berkshire Service delivered by innovative healthcare company Solutions 4 Health.
Bracknell Forest Council and Solutions 4 Health’s smoking cessation model has been nominated out of 663 entries for a national LGC Award 2014.
The Local Government Chronicle is a publication which runs national awards annually for councils in the UK, recognising the efforts of local councils to deliver unique and high-quality services to local communities. This year 663 entries were submitted from 222 organisations and Bracknell Forest has been shortlisted in two categories, Commissioning Pioneer and Public Health.
The nomination put forward for the Commissioning Pioneer category is Solutions 4 Health’s Smokefreelife Berkshire service commissioned Bracknell Forest Council Public Health led by Dr Lisa McNally, Consultant in Public Health. The hard work and commitment of team to reduce smoking prevalence throughout Berkshire can be seen in the high success rates achieved by the service.
The Smokefreelife Berkshire service that was launched in April 2013 has seen some of the best success rates in England and has helped 8000 people kick the habit for good. This is as a result of local authorities in Berkshire effectively collaborating to deliver a successful evidence based stop smoking service under one umbrella while catering to each authorities’ demographic population.
The winner will be announced in March when the event takes place and will highlight the organisations who have demonstrated the best practice in the delivery of their projects and their achievements.
Leena Sankla, Project Director, Solutions 4 Health said: “We are delighted that our Smokefreelife Berkshire Smoking Cessation Service Delivery Model has been recognised and put forward for an LGC award for the service we provide on behalf of Bracknell Forest Council. Smokefreelife Berkshire is a unique model of smoking cessation which takes support directly to local people through community based clinics and the use of our ‘Wellness in Wheels’ mobile clinic and this is how we have been able to successfully target all groups of smokers to tackle smoking prevalence in Berkshire.”
Dr Lisa McNally, Consultant in Public Health, said: “Everything we have achieved has depended on the great working relationships we have with our council and NHS colleagues. Public Health is not so much a team of people, but a way of working across the area.”
