Smoking set to be banned at playgrounds and on the touchlines at children’s football matches in Wales

Wales is set to become the first country in the UK to ban smoking at playgrounds.

The smoke-free restrictions, which also include hospital grounds, school grounds and outdoor children’s care settings, are due to come into effect from 1 March 2021.

Similar restrictions on hospital grounds are in the process of being implemented in Scotland.

Research has shown that children are highly influenced by the behaviour of adults in their lives, including parents and sports coaches. Children with a parent who smokes are 70% more likely to smoke themselves in Wales.

The new smoke-free measures aim to protect people’s health from the harms of second-hand smoke and further de-normalise smoking behaviours for children and young people.

Voluntary smoking bans are already in place in many of these settings but from March 2021, it will become an offence to smoke in these areas. Enforcement of this legislation will be via local authorities who will now have the powers to issue fixed-penalty notices.

Health Minister Vaughan Gething said: “There is strong public support to restrict smoking where children are likely to be present.

“We will continue to take steps to de-normalise this habit and provide a very clear message for children. The evidence that smoking is harmful and damaging is clear cut and our message must be too.

“The restrictions for hospital grounds will promote behaviour change and support smoking cessation among smokers who use our hospital sites and services.

“Support for our stop smoking service Help Me Quit is available across these sites, by calling 0808 163 3129 for free, or by visiting www.helpmequit.wales.

“The impact of COVID-19 has affected many areas of our lives, yet we are determined to continue to make sustained and positive changes. Whilst the evidence on smoking and COVID-19 is still emerging, smokers generally have an increased risk of contracting respiratory infections, such as COVID-19, and so the introduction of these requirements are supporting our response to the pandemic.

“We are committed to our longer-term goal of making more of Wales’ public spaces smoke-free, helping people to make positive changes to not only their own lives, but also to the health and well-being of their children and families.”

Smoking on the touchlines at children’s football matches is also being banned by the Football Association of Wales (FAW).

The decision by the FAW to introduce a no smoking policy on the sidelines of its small-sided football games is designed to help de-normalise smoking in the eyes of children and prevent them from taking up the habit in later life.

The smokefree sidelines measure makes FAW part of a small, but growing number of UEFA Member Associations to adopt and enforce No Smoking policies at small-sided football games. The Welsh policy will affect games and training sessions for 522 junior clubs, 3.159 teams and 42.232 players across Wales.

The policy is part of a wider Smokefree Sports Wales campaign that aims to raise awareness of this intergenerational habit, with 9% of 15 to 16-year olds in Wales still smoking, and more than 6,000 children taking up smoking every year in Wales. The policy will also ensure that more children are protected from exposure to second-hand smoke which can contribute to acute heart problems and long-term respiratory conditions.

Dr David Adams, FAW Trust Technical Director, said: “As a parent of children who take part in grassroots football, I am delighted to work in partnership with ASH Wales and that the FAW and FAW Trust are leading the way to help the next generation of children grow up recognising the health risks associated with smoking.

This step change is also part of our wider agenda to ensure children’s first experiences of small sided football are positive.”

The policy was initially trialled at Rhondda & District Football League’s mini and junior football games and the South Wales Women’s and Girl’s League junior matches before the decision was made to introduce the policy across Wales as part of regulations aimed at encouraging a positive match day culture.

FAW are launching the policy today to mark World Heart Day on 29 September, which is run by the World Heart Federation and supported by UEFA and its Football and Social Responsibility partner for health and wellbeing, Healthy Stadia.

The launch also coincides with UEFA Grassroots Week, scheduled to take place between 23 to 30 September, in conjunction with the European Week of Sport (#BeActive) and in cooperation with the European Commission.

Health Minister, Vaughan Gething, said: “I welcome the work undertaken by the FAW to ban smoking on the sidelines of all Small-Sided Football games in Wales. Voluntary bans like this one help protect children from seeing smoking as an acceptable and normal behaviour and can help prevent them from taking up smoking in the first place.”

The Public Health (Wales) Act 2017 replaces current restrictions on smoking in enclosed and substantially enclosed public and work places and gives Welsh Ministers a regulation-making power to extend the restrictions on smoking to additional premises or vehicles.