More than 500 county mental health workers smoke and NHS bosses are using National No Smoking Day to launch a scheme to help them quit.

Oxfordshire Mental Healthcare Trust has a 1,700-strong workforce, and according to staff surveys about 33 per cent are hooked on cigarettes -- above the 26 per cent figure for the general UK population.

The trust, which oversees Littlemore Hospital, and the Warneford and Park Hospitals in Headington, is offering free nicotine patches and support groups to help smoking staff quit.

The initiative coincides with National No Smoking Day today, and has been launched before the hospitals become smoke free next year, in line with a national goal in the NHS.

Staff will be offered four courses of nicotine replacement therapy patches to combat their cravings, and will also be given support from the Oxfordshire Smoking Cessation Service.

David Bradley, operations director for Oxfordshire Mental Healthcare Trust, said: "Working in mental health is a highly rewarding career, but it can also be very stressful at times.

"That's why it's important staff lead healthy lifestyles, and I hope as many staff as possible take advantage of the free patches and support.

"In the long-term, however, we do want to provide support for both staff and service-users to quit smoking.

"As an NHS trust we have a duty to protect and improve the health of those in our care and those who work for us."

Research has shown that more than two thirds of smokers would like to stop, and Oxfordshire Smoking Cessation Service is today urging people to wake up and give up.

Laura Wardak, from the service, said: "Last year, more than 5,000 Oxfordshire smokers took the decision to stop smoking, either with the help of a specialist advisor at their surgery or at a smoke stop group, and 58 per cent of these people had successfully stopped smoking one month later.

"Many smokers who try to stop on No Smoking Day go cold turkey and we would like to encourage them to consider using Oxfordshire's Smoking Advice Service, which will give them a much better chance of stopping for good."

Meanwhile, Oxfordshire County Fire and Rescue Service has warned that more people die in blazes caused by smoking than from any other source. It is using National No Smoking Day to ensure people are aware of the dangers.