Project summary
A youth forum in Shetland helped to develop a series of appealing characters which could educate young people about the dangers of smoking.
Project Dates
Start Date: 04/09/2007
Ongoing
Location of project
Shetland
Area of healthcare
Community care, Voluntary sector
Target groups
Children and young people, School teachers, Youth workers
Approaches used
Workshops
Aims and objectives
To help reduce the number of young people aged 13 - 15 years who take up smoking, in line with Government targets, by:
- Designing and launching a 'Smoke-free Homes' campaign for Shetland.
- Developing and producing an education and prevention pack, including a DVD and leaflet which highlights the dangers of smoking, designed by yourng people within the community.
What we did
We worked with members of Youth Voice, a forum of young people from across the Isles, to design a local 'Smoke-Free Homes' campaign. In designing the campaign, young people referred to the characters from The Simpsons and felt that a similar idea for a local campaign would be effective. The idea developed further when people added that they remember seeing the 'no smoking' puffin sign.
The group then came up with the idea of using a family of puffin characters for the campaign - the Puff Family - each with its own personality, life experiences, smoking habits and beliefs. The campaign will take people through different scenarios such as passive smoking, home safety, environmental health and the legislation around tobacco sales. As NHS Shetland has recently sponsored the under-11s football team as a smoke-free team, it was agreed that 'Puff', the main family character, would sign up to the agreement with the NHS smoke-free football team.
Evaluation
It is hoped that children will officially meet The Puff Family at primary school. Evaluation is underway following school talks. A general report is produced based on evaluation received, which indicates what children would like to know more about. Health Promotion staff will either go back to provide another lesson or will provide relevant leaflets. For example, children have requested further information on the 'poison kit' jar and the effects of smoking cigars.
A DVD is currently being produced by young people from the Bridges project. Evaluation will involve:
- Designing an evaluation form for the DVD, to be completed by pupils and staff
- Consultation with young people and staff through class discussions held after showing the DVD
Plans for the future
Launch a DVD for schools, backed up by education packs including wallet card, evaluation form and other promotional freebies. Young people would like lip balm, pens, pencils and plectrums with 'No Smoking' sign.
We would like to provide water bottles with Puff characters, as water is important for flushing out nicotine. We would like to give water bottles to children but they can also be given to anyone who smokes. We are seeking funds to develop these ideas further and promote the campaign.