London Youth Vaping Position Statement

Who has this statement been developed by and who is it for?

A Youth Vaping Position Statement has been formally agreed by London’s Directors of Public Health to provide a clear, consistent framework for protecting young Londoners from the harms of addiction.

This statement is designed as a practical resource for public health professionals, educators, local authorities, and strategic partners working with children and young people across London.

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Aligned with national policy and grounded in evidence, the position statement supports local planning and action to ensure a London-wide approach to youth vaping.

It sets out the shared messages, priorities and commitments that partners can use to guide prevention, education, support and enforcement.

Why a Youth Vaping Position Statement?

While nicotine vaping plays an important role in helping adult smokers quit, it is not risk-free and the risks, including nicotine addiction for children and young people who have never smoked.

Recent data shows that around 7% of 11–17-year-olds vape and this figure has remained broadly stable over the past three years. Most young people have never tried a vape, though around 1 in 5 have experimented at least once.

With concerns rising around youth addiction, mental health impacts and the appeal of vaping products to under-18s, London’s Directors of Public Health have outlined a set of five priority areas to support coordinated action across the capital.

Five Priority Areas

1. Prevention first

Partners are encouraged to use clear, consistent public health messaging on the risks of youth vaping. Particularly around addiction, mental wellbeing and long-term harm.

2. Whole-person health promotion

Vaping education should form part of a wider health and wellbeing approach, integrated into topics such as drugs, alcohol and mental health, using age-appropriate materials that resonate with young Londoners.

3. Stronger regulation and enforcement

The statement reinforces support for the Tobacco and Vapes Bill and calls for:

• Plain packaging
• Restrictions on marketing
• Better enforcement of age-of-sale laws

Local partners are encouraged to demonstrate visible support for stronger national regulation.

4. Support for young people

The statement endorses the NCSCT guidance on youth vaping cessation, promoting referrals to specialist services where appropriate and ensuring young people receive structured support when trying to stop vaping.

5. Invest in research and data

Partners are encouraged to back efforts to build clearer evidence on youth vaping trends, and to evaluate what works in prevention, regulation, education and cessation support.

How partners should use the statement

Those working in public health, education, trading standards, children and young people’s services and tobacco control are asked to use the statement to:

• Develop and update relevant local policies
• Shape and deliver campaigns on youth vaping
• Ensure consistent London-wide messaging
• Support training and education
• Strengthen local enforcement and advocacy

Local system leaders are encouraged to champion prevention, strengthen collaboration across sectors, and promote practical action at borough level.

Statement from London’s Directors of Public Health

London ADPH leads Kirsten Watters (Children and Young People) and Dr Somen Banerjee (Tobacco Control) said:

“Evidence clearly shows that vaping can be a useful and effective quit aid for adult smokers, and we know it is significantly less harmful than smoking tobacco. However, for those who do not smoke, vapes are not risk-free and their use among children and young people is concerning.

Working collaboratively across London, public health leaders have now developed a clear position on young people and vaping that sets out the evidence base and public messages jointly agreed by health organisations across the capital, so that there will be a unified approach to reducing vaping among London’s children.”

Key youth vaping messages

• More young people report vaping (7%) than smoking (1%), although 92% of young people neither smoke nor vape.
• Most young people who try vaping do not become regular vapers.
• Vaping is less harmful than smoking, but not risk-free—the long-term harms remain unknown.
• Vapes should not be used by young people, especially those who have never smoked.
• Young people who vape and have a history of smoking should be reminded that vaping is less harmful than smoking, particularly when attempting to stop.
• Creating non-vaping environments helps reduce pressures and social norms around vaping.
• Young people who want to stop vaping should be offered support tailored to their needs, recognising the individual factors that influence their behaviour.
• Stopping vaping is achievable and many young people manage to quit without significant difficulty. Help should always be available and young people should know where to access it.

These messages are adapted from ‘Young people and stopping vaping’ (NCSCT, August 2025).