Smoke-free prisons

Cancer Council NSW supports the implementation of smoke-free policies across all NSW correctional centres and complexes. These policies will help to reduce exposure to second-hand smoke and reduce smoking prevalence among groups with high smoking rates along with promoting a healthy and safe environment for staff, inmates and visitors.

Why did prisons go smoke-free?

• Smoking rates among prisoners are almost five times higher than for the NSW community
• Most prisoners who smoke say that they would like to quit, however three-quarters of those who try to quit while in prison say that attempting to quit in prison is harder than it is outside of prison
• Smoking bans in prisons have been shown to reduce levels of harmful secondhand smoke, and recent research suggests an association between prison smoking bans and reduced mortality among prisoners

When did prisons go smoke-free?

All correctional centres and complexes became smoke-free on 10 August 2015. This announcement came after pilots of smoke-free policies in the maximum security Lithgow Correctional Centre and in the new maximum security wing at Cessnock Correctional Centre.

What does the smoke-free policy mean?

The introduction of the smoke-free policy means that smoking will not be permitted anywhere on the grounds of a correction centre or complex (including car parks, walkways, visiting processing areas).