Four interconnected strands of support, all rooted in the same core belief — that quitting is transformed by human connection, honest information, and a room full of people who truly get it.
The work of Vibrant Health Advocates – Theta is straightforward in design and profound in effect. We bring people together in small groups, usually of eight to twelve, who are at various stages of trying to stop smoking or vaping. Those groups are facilitated by trained peer supporters — people who have quit themselves and have been prepared through our facilitator training programme to guide sessions with warmth, structure, and honesty.
Every session combines a brief knowledge element, drawn from plain-language health information we have developed and refined over years, with genuine peer conversation: what has happened since last week, what felt hard, what helped, what didn't. There is no shame in our sessions. There is no hierarchy between facilitator and participant. There is no script that treats adults like children who need to be scared or lectured into change.
Beyond the groups themselves, we put considerable effort into the things that make groups work: training and supporting our facilitators well, designing materials that are readable and honest rather than clinical and alienating, building partnerships with GP surgeries and community health workers so that referrals flow naturally, and following up with participants after their group ends to offer the maintenance support that makes the difference between a successful quit and a slow relapse.
We are funded by a combination of grants from Scottish health bodies and trusts, and we are accountable to our participants, our communities, and the OSCR register of Scottish charities.
Twelve people, one shared goal
Whether you're in Dumfries town centre or a village an hour's drive away, ready for a group or not quite there yet — we have a strand of support that fits.
Our core programme — regular small-group sessions in Dumfries where people quit together, facilitated by trained peer supporters.
Groups meet weekly at accessible community venues in Dumfries town centre, with sessions designed to run for eight consecutive weeks with the option to continue in a looser monthly maintenance group thereafter. Each session has a structured element — covering a specific aspect of cessation such as managing triggers, understanding withdrawal, or navigating social situations — alongside open peer conversation. Groups are capped at twelve participants to preserve intimacy and ensure everyone has space to speak.
Satellite sessions delivered in village halls and community spaces across Dumfries & Galloway, taking the peer group model to people who can't easily travel.
Recognising that many of our region's residents face real barriers to reaching Dumfries regularly, we run outreach sessions in community venues in surrounding towns and villages, working in partnership with local halls, GP practices, and community councils to identify suitable spaces and spread the word. These sessions use the same facilitated peer model as our town-centre groups and are supported by the same trained peer facilitators, often working in their own communities. Outreach scheduling responds to what communities tell us they need, rather than a fixed programme imposed from outside.
Matched support between a trained peer mentor and an individual working through their quit attempt, for those who aren't ready for group settings.
Not everyone is comfortable walking into a group on their first attempt, and for those individuals we offer one-to-one peer mentoring, typically delivered over six to eight sessions either in person in Dumfries or by phone for participants at greater distance. Mentors are drawn from our trained peer facilitator pool and are matched thoughtfully — by age, background, or type of tobacco or vape use — to maximise the sense of being genuinely understood. Mentoring can serve as a standalone strand or as a bridge into group participation.
A dedicated programme addressing vape dependency with resources and peer support tailored to the specific experience of vaping.
Vaping cessation presents distinct challenges — a different product landscape, a different demographic, and a set of social narratives that don't map neatly onto the older smoking cessation literature. Our vaping strand uses the same peer-support structure as our core groups but incorporates specific information about vaping devices, nicotine salt concentrations, and the particular psychological patterns of vape dependency. We have developed plain-language materials specifically for this strand and train facilitators to engage confidently with the questions participants ask — including honest conversations about the relative risks of vaping versus smoking and what the evidence actually says.
Weekly in Dumfries town centre
Out in the communities we serve
All our groups are completely free to attend. No referral needed. No commitment required beyond turning up to your first session.
No referral needed. Find out which of our programmes is right for you — just get in touch.
Get in touch