This year the NHS Suffolk Stop Smoking Service sponsored the KISS FM Dome Tent at the Suffolk Show to raise awareness of the dangers of smoking to young people. We also launched a brand new logo ‘Be Smoke Free Be Happy’, which is going to be used on all future branding of the service specifically aimed at young people.

‘We felt that KISS FM is a station which is synonymous with youth and we wanted to tap into their expertise in this area to try and reach a group which is notoriously hard to influence’ says Daniel Chapelle – Health Improvement Manager. ‘We know that the earlier people start smoking the greater the health impact in later life. We want to let young people know it’s better not to start at all”, he adds.

KISS FM are keen to be associated with the service too. Their marketing manager Mike Trott said: “Kiss 105-108 is not about finger wagging or preaching to our listeners. We do however take our social responsibility seriously, so when we are discussing issue such as smoking, our stance is always to talk to the youth not at them. Kids know that smoking isn’t healthy and by partnering with bodies like the Stop Smoking Service we can reinforce this message.

The new logo was designed by one of the young people who were shortlisted for a recent art competition set up by the service. Local school children were asked to design a poster explaining the negative aspects of smoking. ‘The Suffolk Stop Smoking judges were very taken with this particular graphic design which fits with its own ‘smoke free’ message. We decided to adopt the ‘Be Smoke Free Be Happy’ logo for all our branding aimed at young people”, says Daniel Chapelle.