Equality impact assessment (EIA) form: evidencing paying due regard to protected characteristics

E-cigarette procurement

An Equality Impact Assessment (EIA) form is a document that proves paying due regard by considering protected characteristics. EIAs that accompany reports presented to Councillors for decision-making are published with the committee papers on our website and are also available in hard copy at the relevant meetings.

Section 1: Initial Equality Impact Assessment Screening

This section documents the equality screening process of actual or potential impacts of the proposed activity on a specific protected characteristic, along with NYC's additional agreed-upon characteristics, to determine whether a full Equality Impact Assessment (EIA) is necessary or appropriate.

Basic Details

Directorate

HAS

Service area

Public Health

Proposal being screened

E-cigarette procurement – 2026 to 2029

Officer(s) carrying out screening

Scott Chapman – Service Manager: Living Well Smokefree

Reviewed by Shanna Carrell: Involvement and Governance Manager and Naomi Smith: Head of Health Improvement

Lead Officer and contact details

Scott Chapman – Scott.chapman@northyorks.gov.uk

Date of the assessment

22 December 2025

Please describe briefly what this EIA is about.

(e.g. are you starting a new service, changing how you do something, or stopping doing something?)

A procurement exercise is about to be undertaken to be able to continue to provide e-cigarettes to individuals looking to quit smoking within North Yorkshire via support from the local stop smoking service, Living Well Smokefree (LWSF). This has been in place for the past 2 years, with this procurement exercise looking to extend this provision. There is significant commitment of resources from national government as part of Smokefree Generation funding, with £70 million identified nationally over 5 years, starting in 2024-25. Funding per Local Authority area has been calculated based on local smoking prevalence.

What does the authority hope to achieve by it? (E.g. to save money, meet increased demand, do things in a better way.)

We are currently in the second of five planned years of additional investment of £70million for local stop smoking services across England to support people to stop smoking in an effort to achieve a 5% national prevalence by 2030.

Utilising the funding to meet the target in North Yorkshire, significant expansion, and enhancement of the Living Well Smokefree (LWSF) service has been undertaken and is in the midst of implementation. To support the work of the service, it is vital to have a range of effective options of pharmacotherapy available to support smokers accessing the service to quit, including e-cigarettes. Nicotine vapes are effective cessation aids and are recommended as a first choice stop smoking aid with an evidence rating of A and a quit rate boost of x2. While vaping is not risk-free, the latest review of evidence concludes that vaping, in the short and medium term, is significantly less harmful than smoking cigarettes and poses a small fraction of the risks of smoking. E-cigarettes are not recommended or should not be sold to people who are younger than 18 years old and they should also not be used by non-smokers. If you don’t smoke, don’t vape.

The ambition is that the continued access to e-cigarettes for people aiming to quit smoking with Living Well Smokefree will contribute to the desired outcome locally, which includes a reduction in overall smoking prevalence in North Yorkshire, especially within priority population groups identified in order to narrow inequalities.

Further Details

1.1 How have stakeholders been involved in this policy/ decision/ proposal? (e.g. a consultation exercise)

No public consultation has taken place however engagement with potential providers is planned as part of the procurement process.

Each individual accessing Living Well Smokefree receives person-centred and tailored behavioural support provided by trained advisors as part of their journey to quit smoking, and this includes the opportunity to explore which quit aid(s) will best support the person to quit.

1.2 Will the proposal have a significant effect on how other organisations operate? (e.g. partners, funding criteria, etc.). Please explain briefly

The procurement process will result in the appointment of the most suitable provider based on the agreed evaluation criteria. As this provision is already in place in North Yorkshire under an existing contract, it is possible that there may be a change of provider which may impact on the incumbent provider. Bids will be evaluated using Price-Quality evaluation criteria.

1.3 Impact on people with any of the following protected characteristics as defined by the Equality Act 2010, or NYC’s additional agreed characteristics

As part of this assessment, please consider the following questions:

To what extent is this service used by particular groups of people with protected characteristics?

Does the proposal relate to functions that previous consultation has identified as important?

Do different groups have different needs or experiences in the area the proposal relates to?

If for any characteristic, it is considered that there is likely to be an adverse impact or you have ticked ‘Don’t know/no info available’, then a full EIA should be carried out where this is proportionate. You are advised to speak to your directorate representative for advice if you are in any doubt.

Tick and indicate which protected characteristics are identified as relevant to the proposal (positive, negative, neutral or don’t know).

Protected characteristic

Impact

Comments

Positive

Negative

Neutral

Don't know

Age

E-cigarettes are not recommended or should not be sold to people who are younger than 18 years old. LWSF e-cigarette offer is not currently available to people under 18 and this would continue under the new contract arrangement hence neutral impact. Young people between 12 and 18 years of age can access Nicotine Replacement Therapy (NRT) to support their quit journey through the service.

For other age groups this proposal would have a positive impact.

Disability

Sex

Race (including GRTS)

Gender reassignment

Sexual orientation

Religion or belief

Pregnancy or maternity

LWSF service policy is that e-cigarettes should not be offered to pregnant people, and this would continue under the new contract arrangement hence neutral impact. Pregnant people can access Nicotine Replacement Therapy (NRT) to support their quit journey through the service.

Marriage or civil partnership

NYC’s additional characteristics

People in rural areas

The proposed e-cigarette provision includes postal delivery of products which enables easy access to quit aids, including in rural areas where there may be limited local pharmacy and/or service provision to access other forms of quit aid

People on a low income

Carer (unpaid family or friend)

Are from the Armed Forces Community (including veterans)

1.4 To which Part(s) of the Public Sector Equality Duties is the Policy/decision/proposal relevant? Tick and briefly describe.

General Duties	Yes	No	Details
Eliminate unlawful discrimination, harassment and victimisation
Advance equality of opportunity	Y		This proposal will support work in an area where there are known inequalities. Priority population groups such as those living in social housing, those with severe mental illness, people who are homeless and routine and manual workers, will be targeted as prevalence is higher within these groups and leads to poorer health outcomes as a result.
Foster good relations between different groups

1.5 Decision (Please tick one option)

Decision to recommend this policy/ decision for an Equality Impact Assessment?

Yes

If the answer is “Yes”, or you indicate a negative impact on any of the characteristics mentioned in the table above, please continue to Section 2 and complete the full Equality Impact Assessment.

If the answer is “No”, please give a brief reason here.

This proposal will support work in an area where there are known inequalities. Priority population groups such as those living in social housing, those with severe mental illness, people who are homeless and routine and manual workers, will be targeted as prevalence is higher within these groups and leads to poorer health outcomes as a result. Pathways and service delivery are specifically designed to ensure a person-centred approach to anyone using the service including those from priority populations. The e-cigarettes procured through this arrangement will only be available via the local stop smoking service Living Well Smokefree as part of an assessment by a trained advisor and treatment pathway with the aim of quitting smoking. For this reason, the majority of people with protected characteristics would experience a positive impact as a result of continuing provision of e-cigarettes as one of a range of quit aids through Living Well Smokefree. Neutral impact is noted for people who are pregnant and under 18s as the e-cigarette offer is not available to them through Living Well Smokefree currently, and it is proposed that this would continue to be the case.

Signed (Assistant Director or equivalent)

Louise Wallace (DPH)

Date

23/02/2026