Smoke Free Cars, Homes and Parks

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Children whose parents smoke are 90 per cent more likely to start smoking themselves, leading to an uptake of smoking by approximately 23,000 15 year olds across England and Wales each year.

Children, babies and other adults are exposed to harmful secondhand tobacco smoke when you smoke in your car, house or in a park.

Secondhand smoke is a serious health hazard. Every time someone breathes in secondhand smoke, they breathe in over 4,000 chemicals - many are highly toxic and over 50 are known to cause cancer.

Secondhand smoke is a real and substantial threat to child health, causing a variety of adverse health effects including increased susceptibility to lower respiratory tract infections such as pneumonia and bronchitis, worsening of asthma, middle ear disease, decreased lung function and sudden infant death syndrome.

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Smoke Free Playgrounds

From June 2015 all council managed children’s playgrounds are considered as smoke free areas. This voluntary scheme has been introduced to help encourage parks users to refrain from smoking around children.

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Smoke Free Cars

From October 2015 all private vehicles carrying children passengers (under 18 years old) must be free from smoke. This was due to new legislation: The Smoke Free (Private Vehicles) Regulations 2015. The legislation allows for local authorities to use fixed penalty notices (FPNs) of £50 for anyone caught smoking in private vehicles with children.

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Smoke Free Homes and Cars Pledge

Take our pledge to promise that you will keep your car and home free from tobacco smoke simply by filling in this online form. In doing this you will get a free goody bag and the chance for a free fire safety check from the London Fire Brigade. You will also receive a biannual email updating you with what the Smoke Free Team have been up to.

The legislation allows for local authorities to use fixed penalty notices (FPNs) of £50 for anyone caught smoking in private vehicles with children.

Benefits of smoke free areas

  • your children may be healthier and less likely to be sick
  • it may help you stop smoking
  • your children will be less likely to start smoking
  • your home and car will be cleaner and fresher
  • you are less likely to have a house fire
  • your pets are likely to be healthier and live longer.

How to keep your pledge

  • display your smoke free sticker in your home or car
  • don’t smoke in your own home or car
  • ask visitors and family members to smoke outside, not in your home or car.

Contact Us

Smoke Free
Consumer and Business Regulations Service

Tower Hamlets Town Hall
160 Whitechapel Road
London
E1 1BJ


Tel: 020 7364 5000 (9am-5pm, Mon-Fri)
Email: healthandsafety@towerhamlets.gov.uk