ASH Scotland – Action on Smoking and Health (Scotland) – is the independent Scottish charity taking action to reduce the harm caused by tobacco.

We seek to improve health and quality of life by helping to create a society which supports young people in remaining tobacco-free, helps those who want to stop smoking, protects people from second-hand smoke and challenges the inequalities resulting from tobacco use.

Our activities include an expert information service, campaigning for political action on tobacco and health, supporting community groups to help their service users affected by tobacco use, building public support and awareness for making Scotland free from tobacco and supporting charities, enforcement agencies, the NHS and others to make their contribution to achieving that goal.

Understanding that most smokers start when they are children, and that most smokers want to quit, we want the next generation in Scotland to be free from tobacco – by which we mean that ideally smoking would be limited to the small number of adults who actively choose to do so. We are pro-health and pro-people – and the evidence is clear that a society free from tobacco will not just be healthier, but wealthier and fairer too.

ASH Scotland works in a number of different ways to bring about a healthier Scotland, free from the harm and inequality caused by tobacco:

• we operate a free information service, supplying information about tobacco and health
• we join with youth groups and other organisations supporting families and young people in rejecting tobacco
• we conduct research and campaign for political action
• we work to address the strong links between smoking and mental health
• we tackle inequalities through addressing tobacco use in disadvantaged communities
• owe are exploring the financial costs of smoking, and how we can better support people living in poverty who want to stop smoking.
• We have a wide range of free resources, training and support to enable you to address tobacco and related products, and improve people’s health and wellbeing.