CONFERENCE PROCEEDING
Adhaire project – implementation of school tobacco policies through an advocacy coalition
1
UCLouvain, Louvain-la-Neuve, Belgium
Tob. Prev. Cessation 2026;12(Supplement 1):A176
ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND-AIM:
Secondary schools still struggle to enforce their tobacco policy and to keep their learning environment smoke-free. Yet enforcement is the key to improving the effectiveness of those policies. The ADHAirE study aims to reduce smoking at school through improved enforcement of the school’s tobacco policy.
METHODS:
The ADHAirE study was conducted over 2 years in 18 Belgian secondary schools. Schools were randomized into either the experimental or the control group. Schools in the experimental group built up an advocacy coalition involving students, staff, and the principal. Those schools were also linked to the others to share best practices about their school tobacco policy. The objective was to share beliefs about the tobacco policy and about the school’s role in tobacco prevention. This randomized controlled trial assesses the effectiveness of the advocacy coalition to improve the enforcement of the school tobacco policy.
RESULTS:
Baseline results showed high visibility of smoking among students and staff on school premises, indicating low policy enforcement. The effectiveness of the intervention will be assessed at the end of the project, in June 2026.
CONCLUSIONS:
The ADHAirE study is based on the latest research and recommendations on school tobacco prevention. Following the social norm theory, this study goes further than many others before, which only focused on health education, targeting the individual and not the social environment in which smoking occurs. Through the advocacy coalition, ADHAirE initiated a community-level intervention that will ensure that all stakeholders are involved in decision-sharing about the rules, ensuring their acceptability, adoption, and sustainability. A nationwide model promoting nicotine‑free environments in Finnish vocational colleges
Secondary schools still struggle to enforce their tobacco policy and to keep their learning environment smoke-free. Yet enforcement is the key to improving the effectiveness of those policies. The ADHAirE study aims to reduce smoking at school through improved enforcement of the school’s tobacco policy.
METHODS:
The ADHAirE study was conducted over 2 years in 18 Belgian secondary schools. Schools were randomized into either the experimental or the control group. Schools in the experimental group built up an advocacy coalition involving students, staff, and the principal. Those schools were also linked to the others to share best practices about their school tobacco policy. The objective was to share beliefs about the tobacco policy and about the school’s role in tobacco prevention. This randomized controlled trial assesses the effectiveness of the advocacy coalition to improve the enforcement of the school tobacco policy.
RESULTS:
Baseline results showed high visibility of smoking among students and staff on school premises, indicating low policy enforcement. The effectiveness of the intervention will be assessed at the end of the project, in June 2026.
CONCLUSIONS:
The ADHAirE study is based on the latest research and recommendations on school tobacco prevention. Following the social norm theory, this study goes further than many others before, which only focused on health education, targeting the individual and not the social environment in which smoking occurs. Through the advocacy coalition, ADHAirE initiated a community-level intervention that will ensure that all stakeholders are involved in decision-sharing about the rules, ensuring their acceptability, adoption, and sustainability. A nationwide model promoting nicotine‑free environments in Finnish vocational colleges
| eISSN: | 2459-3087 |
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