Update on new rules on tobacco and vaping
Camden Council have asked us to make parents and carers aware that from 1 January 2027, England will introduce new tobacco and vaping rules affecting young people, including a permanent age-of-sale ban for anyone born on or after 1 January 2009. The focus is on it being illegal for retailers to sell tobacco to anyone under the age of sale, but young people themselves will not be criminalised.
The Tobacco and Vapes Act brings in several changes designed to protect young people’s health. From 29 October, shops must follow new rules: you must be 18 to buy no-nicotine vapes and nicotine pouches and any other novel (non-traditional) nicotine products, free vape giveaways are banned, and vape vending machines are removed from public places.
Trading Standards will also have new powers to issue on-the-spot fines to shops that break the law. These changes are part of a national plan to create a Smokefree Generation, reduce youth vaping, and make nicotine products less accessible and less appealing to under-18s. A national awareness campaign will launch later this year to explain the new rules to students, families, and the wider public.
Pharmacy First: Getting help sooner at your local pharmacy
The NHS Pharmacy First service makes it easier for people to get advice and treatment for certain common health problems without always needing a GP appointment. In England, this allows pharmacists to help with seven common conditions, including sore throat, earache, sinusitis, shingles, infected insect bites, impetigo and uncomplicated urinary tract infections in women.
Pharmacies are often the first place families think of for everyday health questions, and Pharmacy First builds on that role. It gives people quicker access to care, helps free up GP appointments for more urgent needs, and uses the expertise of trained pharmacists who can assess symptoms, give self-care advice and, where appropriate, supply prescription medicines through defined clinical pathways.
The service is designed to be convenient as well as safe. Patients can be referred by their GP, NHS 111 or urgent care services, and in many cases they can also go directly to a participating pharmacy without an appointment. If the pharmacist thinks symptoms need further assessment, they will direct the person to the right place for additional help.
For families, this means a local pharmacy can sometimes offer a faster and simpler route to the right care. It is a helpful reminder that pharmacists are highly trained healthcare professionals who do much more than dispense medicines, and that community pharmacies are an important part of the NHS.
