Bringing Our Values to Life

Last year, we launched an ambitious new five-year strategy. It sets out our mission and our next steps towards a world free from the harm caused by tobacco. But as we looked ahead, we also wanted to take some time and reflect on how we work together to achieve our goals. Rather than rushing to rewrite our values, we made a conscious decision to take our time and do this properly, with our team at the heart of the process.

As a team we discussed why we need organisational values and looked at examples from other organisations – including ones we admire and others we are less keen on (guess which tobacco giant has ‘caring’ as one of its values?!) We asked the team to share words and phrases they felt reflected our culture and the way we work at ASH. These weren’t aspirational buzzwords, but honest reflections of what matters to us day to day. See the word cloud below for what we came up with and how much common ground there was among us. 

We grouped these ideas into clear themes, refining the language as a team so the values felt authentic, meaningful, and shared. These were then discussed with the Board, whose input helped us sharpen and strengthen them further.

Just as importantly, we spent time talking about what these values look like in practice -how they show up in our work, our decisions, and our relationships. These conversations were vital in ensuring our values are not just words on paper, but principles we actively live by.

Our values form a shared foundation of beliefs, behaviours, and understanding that help us work together toward our mission. We are committed to embedding them into everything we do, from how we support one another as colleagues, to how we collaborate with stakeholders, engage politically, recruit and recognise staff, and prioritise wellbeing and development.

Here are the values we’ve agreed together:

1. Integrity through Evidence
   We are rigorous, honest, and evidence-led in everything we do, building trust by holding ourselves to the highest standards.
2. Respectful Collaboration
   We draw strength from unity, valuing lived experience, listening as much as leading, and treating colleagues, partners, and communities with kindness and respect.
3. Bold and Restless for Change
   We are ambitious and courageous advocates, challenging the status quo, speaking truth to power, and striving for a smoke-free future.
4. Adaptable and Innovative
   We are flexible, agile, and creative, always evolving to meet new challenges and opportunities, working as a team.
5. Inclusive and Driven by Purpose
   We are anti-smoking, not anti-smoker: tackling stigma, protecting health, and caring for the wellbeing of both the public and our own staff.

These values reflect our organisation now and our aspirations as we deliver our strategy over the coming years. Most importantly, they guide how we work together and with our partners.