Dear Patient,

For the 2025/26 winter campaign, we are helping our patients to focus on promoting vaccinations, advising the public on how to stay well, and signposting people to the correct healthcare services. It follows a "Winter Wellness" theme and is supported by national NHS planning and local borough-specific guidance. 

Campaign priorities

The campaign addresses the following:

• Vaccinations: Encouraging eligible people to get their flu and COVID-19 vaccinations. This is a primary message delivered in partnership with local providers, including pharmacies.
• Accessing the right services: Guiding residents on where to seek appropriate care to manage demand on emergency services. This includes advising on when to use:
• NHS 111: For urgent but non-life-threatening medical advice, available via phone or online.
• Local pharmacists: For advice and minor illnesses, as many are open for extended hours.
• Urgent Treatment Centres (UTCs): For minor injuries and illnesses.
• GPs: For evening and weekend appointments for persistent health concerns.

·       Mental health support: Providing information on how to access mental health services, including 24/7 crisis lines and local talking therapies.

• Keeping warm and well: Addressing the health impacts of cold weather and the cost-of-living crisis, especially for vulnerable people. This includes information on local warm spaces, energy advice, and financial support services.
• Self-care: Encouraging the public to manage minor ailments at home with basic supplies, freeing up emergency services for those most in need.
• Parental guidance: Providing targeted resources for parents on how to manage winter illnesses in children, redirecting them from unnecessary emergency department visits. 

See Below to find information and services to help you manage your health

https://www.nhs.uk/

Find out information below on how to stay well this season. From advice on how to stay well, how to access cost of living support, as well as the latest information on winter vaccinations.

Keeping Well This Winter

Winter Wellness Advice

 Winter Wellness Advice for Residents of City & Hackney and Other Local North East London Boroughs

‘Let’s quit smoking together this Stoptober’

When you stop smoking, good things start to happen — you can begin to see almost immediate improvements to your health.

So, this October, join the thousands of smokers committing to quitting. Stop smoking for 28 days and you are 5 times more likely to give up for good.

Stoptober is back, and we’re calling on England’s smokers to join millions of others who have quit successfully with the campaign.

Over 5 million adults in England still smoke. Smoking causes 75,000 deaths a year, making it the biggest cause of preventable illness and death. Quitting smoking is one of the best things you can do for your health. The good news is, if you quit smoking for 28 days, you’re five times more likely to quit for good.

Going ‘cold turkey’ is still the most common way that people attempt to give up, but quit attempts are successful more often when using quit smoking support.

That’s why this year’s Stoptober campaign is encouraging smokers to quitting this October by exploring the free support available. We want aspiring quitters to know that we have their back and by taking part in Stoptober, they are more likely to succeed.

It is much easier to stop smoking when you get the right support and there are many options from which to choose.

There’s a wide range of free quitting tools available, including the NHS Quit Smoking app, the Personal Quit Plan, expert support from local stop smoking services and a Smokefree Facebook support group.

There’s also lots of information about aids such as nicotine-free medicines, nicotine replacement therapies and vaping, available at nhs.uk/better-health/quit-smoking.

Get your free Personal Quit Plan here https://www.nhs.uk/better-health/quit-smoking/ready-to-quit-smoking/personal-quit-plan

Together, we can do this.

Check me out to help stop smoking

If you decide to stop, simply visit the website Smokefree City and Hackney and you can get started as soon as you are mentally ready. The service is open 9 AM to 5 Pm Monday to Friday and you can contact them on 0800 046 99 46.

If you do not live/work/study/ have a GP in City or Hackney, the Stop Smoking London portal will point you to your local stop smoking service!

Tel 0300 123 1044 7 days per week: Mon-Fri, 9am-8pm and Sat-Sun 11am-4pm

Dear Patient,

We are delighted to share that Stoptober is back this October with a new national campaign designed to encourage and support smokers to quit for good. While smoking rates have declined in recent years, over 5 million people in England still smoke and it remains the single biggest cause of preventable illness and death. Since its inception in 2012, Stoptober has successfully helped 2.5 million smokers to make a quit attempt and has become a well-recognised annual event in the public health calendar.

The theme for this year’s campaign is ‘When you stop smoking, good things start to happen’; reminding smokers of the many benefits of quitting and providing useful tips to help them on their quitting journey. The campaign will encourage smokers to search ‘Stoptober’, directing them to a range of information and free support tools on the Better Health - Quit Smoking website.

Now is the time to start thinking about how Stoptober could work for you locally. We also know that face-to-face interaction with smokers is highly effective in generating quit attempts and explaining the range of support on offer. There is a specialist Quit Smoking Service locally and  

Vaping resources for secondary schools

With a rise in the number of children vaping, Better Health have created teaching resources aimed at helping key stage 3 children understand the impact that vaping has on their physical and mental wellbeing. Written by teachers and featuring films co-created with young people, they encourage discussion about nicotine, what vaping is and the impact it has on both young people and the environment. The flexible resources can be used individually during form time or together as a full lesson plan.

They are available to download free on the School Zone website.

Best wishes,

Kingsmead Healthcare

GPs and Staff Team

Quit smoking this Stoptober - Better Health - NHS

Stoptober 2025 Poster

Health Spot is an integrated health and wellbeing service for young people aged 11 to 25, located at the Forest Road Youth Hub in Dalston. The core of Health Spot's offering is a partnership between youth services and health professionals.

• Dr. Neha Pandhi, a City and Hackney GP, delivers a weekly adolescent GP service on Thursdays.
• Any young person aged 11 to 25 registered with a City and Hackney GP practice can access these appointments.

The integrated offer aims to support young people's health literacy, health rights, and autonomous access to care - whilst also reducing health inequalities for those who may not access services. This model is inspired by the Spotlight service in Tower Hamlets.

Other services available at Health Spot include:

• The wider youth hub offer and activities (including arts, sports)
• Sexual health clinic
• Stop smoking service
• ETE support
• Mental health support
• Drugs and alcohol information and advice

For more information, please see Health Spot City and Hackney - Young Hackney

Spotlight service in Tower Hamlets

Health Spot City and Hackney - Young Hackney

Tenants Advice - How can we help

The adaptive yoga classes are suitable for anyone regardless of skill levels, mobility levels and age. Come experience the physical and mental benefits of yoga in a completely inclusive environment.

Thursdays, 11am to 12pm 

Sancutary Community Centre

9A Kingsmead Way

E9 5QG

To register for more information, contact: 

Regini Khurana

07462701785

Ragini@vchackeny.org