Hazel CheesemanSector leader

Chief Executive

Action on Smoking and Health (ASH) is based in Vauxhall and Camberwell Green (London)

Cited in UK press coverage of health & social care

1 citation

Across 1 topic, first on 27 Aug 2026.

Biography

Hazel Cheeseman became Chief Executive of Action on Smoking and Health (ASH) on 1 October 2024, appointed by Trustees following an open and competitive recruitment process. ASH is an independent public health charity, established in 1971 by the Royal College of Physicians, that campaigns to eliminate the harm caused by tobacco. Cheeseman worked in senior roles at ASH for over ten years before becoming Deputy Chief Executive in 2021, and prior to joining ASH worked in the palliative care, homelessness, and housing sectors. She has worked in tobacco control since 2013, initially leading ASH's programme supporting local government to take on public health responsibilities, before leading the organisation's policy work. She is known for establishing the Mental Health and Smoking Partnership — a coalition of mental health and public health charities focused on reducing smoking among people with mental health conditions — and for securing NHS England funding to support tobacco dependency treatment services. As Chief Executive she has publicly advocated for the Smokefree Generation age-of-sale law and a government roadmap to a smokefree country.

References

1.ASH announces Hazel Cheeseman as new chief executive – ASH — Appointment date, route to role, prior roles at ASH, career background, and specific achievements including Mental Health & Smoking Partnership and NHS England funding.
2.Spokespeople – ASH — Current role as Chief Executive; ASH's function as secretariat to the APPG on Smoking and Health; career timeline in tobacco control from 2013.
3.'A Historic Shift in Public Health' – ASH Chief Executive writes to retailers as the smokefree generation law moves closer – ASH — Cheeseman's public advocacy role as CE on the Smokefree Generation age-of-sale law.
4.Hazel Cheeseman (@HazelCheeseman) – X — Confirms X account identifies the holder as Chief Executive at Action on Smoking and Health (ASH).
5.

Expertise

Cited on

Hospital discharge / bed-blocking

Stated areas of expertise

Tobacco control policy
Smokefree generation legislation
Health inequalities and smoking
Mental health and smoking
Local government public health
Vaping regulation

Notable achievements

Established the Mental Health and Smoking Partnership, a coalition of leading mental health and public health charities committed to ending excess premature death caused by smoking among people with mental health conditions. Source ↗
Secured funding from NHS England to support implementation of tobacco dependency treatment services in the NHS. Source ↗
Secured funding from Cancer Research UK to develop ASH's work across risk factors, leading to a role in a UKRI-funded programme addressing commercial determinants of health at a local level. Source ↗
As Chief Executive, wrote an open letter to UK retailers ahead of the Smokefree Generation age-of-sale law taking effect on 1 January 2027, urging the sector to treat the policy as a manageable transition. Source ↗

What they’ve said

“With millions of people affected by preventable diseases caused by tobacco, alcohol and unhealthy food, we need stronger action from the government to match the rhetoric – including minimum unit pricing to prevent strong alcohol being sold cheaply, a levy on the profits of the tobacco industry and the implementation of mandatory policies to improve food and drink.”
Chief executive, Action on Smoking and Health · Hospital discharge / bed-blocking · 27 Aug 2026 · Get tough on tobacco and alcohol firms to improve public health | Letters ↗

Source references

Get tough on tobacco and alcohol firms to improve public health | Letterstheguardian.com · 27 Aug 2026

Contact & links

Organisational contact points only, each taken from a page the organisation publishes itself. No personal or direct contact details are held or shown.

Chief executives, directors and spokespeople of trade bodies, representative associations and charities speaking for the sector. Citations are counted by an automated scan of UK press coverage and may be incomplete. Roles, biographies and contact details are researched and human-reviewed before they appear here; anything not yet reviewed is simply absent rather than shown unverified. See the methodology for how this page is built, or email contact@bridgeheadcommunications.com to correct anything on it.