The first day of Stoptober saw smokers taking on the challenge as a Bury nursery manager urged parents to bin the cigarettes for the sake of their children.
Jo Crankshaw, Senior Early Years Manager at Ambers Attic children’s nursery in Radcliffe organised a mass quitting event after she decided to kick her 20 a day habit.
After Jo injured her knee she took up smoking spending almost £3,000 a year on cigarettes. She developed a chesty cough and has decided to involve 100 prents and staff of the nursery to quit with her.
Jo said: “I used to compete in a lot of sports, however I now smoke 20 a day at the cost of £8 which equates to a monthly cost of £243.
“I decided that I wanted to quit when I developed a chesty cough and I thought that instead of quitting on my own I wanted to involve the whole community.
“Quitting as a community, rather than on your own, is a lot easier and it contributes to my aim of providing a smokefree future for children.
Jo also enlisted the help of Tobacco Free Futures and described the response as ‘phenomenal.’
”Together I am confident we can quit together for the duration of October and beyond. It will be great to know that I will be helping the other parents save money, improve their health and help protect their children,” she added.
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