North Staffs Breathe Easy Support Group
Breathe Easy North Staffordshire (BENS) is a community-based, non-clinical support group for people living with lung conditions and their families. Led by people with lived experience, BENS provides friendly, inclusive spaces where members can connect, share experiences, and support one another outside of clinical settings, helping to reduce isolation and build confidence at an early stage.
The group meets on the first Friday of each month, bringing people together to hear from expert speakers and increase knowledge and confidence in self-management in a relaxed, social environment. There is also a respiratory specialist from MPFT joining us every month who you can talk with.
In addition, BENS offers weekly exercise sessions and walking activities tailored to people with lung conditions, supporting physical activity, wellbeing, and helping members manage their condition in a safe and supportive way.
BENS works alongside NHS services, as well as voluntary and community sector partners, to complement clinical care, strengthen community resilience, and help people stay well and independent across North Staffordshire.
South Staffs Asthma+Lung Support Group
The South Staffordshire Asthma + Lung UK Support Group is a community-based, non-clinical support group for people living with lung conditions and their families across South Staffordshire. Supported by Asthma + Lung UK and led by volunteers with lived experience, the group provides a welcoming space where people can meet others who understand the challenges of living with a lung condition.
Meeting on the 2nd Wednesday every two months (January, March, May, July, September, November), the group offers opportunities to come together socially, share experiences, and learn more about managing lung health, helping to reduce isolation and build confidence.
Working alongside local NHS services and community partners, the group complements clinical care by offering peer support, information, and encouragement that helps people stay well, active, and connected within their community.
Our Staffordshire NHS Partners
MPFT
Midlands Partnership NHS Foundation Trust (MPFT) provides a range of community-based services to support people living with lung conditions across Staffordshire.
Through respiratory and community nursing teams, MPFT helps people manage their condition closer to home, offering support with treatment plans, symptom management, inhaler use, and flare-ups. The trust also plays a key role in pulmonary rehabilitation, helping people build confidence, improve fitness, and stay active in a safe and supported way.
By working closely with GPs, hospitals, and local support organisations, Midlands Partnership NHS Foundation Trust helps people stay well, reduce hospital visits, and maintain independence.
UHNM
University Hospitals of North Midlands NHS Trust (UHNM) supports people with lung conditions through services based at Royal Stoke University Hospital and County Hospital.
Across both hospitals, people can access respiratory clinics, tests to check lung health, and advice and support from specialist doctors and nurses.
Royal Stoke provides more complex and urgent hospital care for people who need it, while County Hospital focuses mainly on outpatient appointments and ongoing follow-up.
The teams work closely with GPs, pulmonary rehabilitation services, and local support groups to help people understand their condition, manage symptoms, and stay as well as possible at home.
Breathe Easy Groups are part of Asthma + Lung UK
Asthma + Lung UK
Asthma + Lung UK is the national charity dedicated to helping people with asthma, COPD, and all lung conditions live well. They provide trusted, expert information, a free helpline, and online communities so no one has to face a lung condition alone. At the same time, the charity works hard at a national level to make sure lung health is taken seriously by funding life-changing research into new treatments and by campaigning for cleaner air and better care across the NHS.
Here in Staffordshire, Asthma + Lung UK’s work is brought to life through Breathe Easy groups like ours. While the charity fights nationally for breakthroughs in science and fairer health policies, our groups provide friendly, local support—whether that’s meeting others who understand, joining in activities, or learning about self-management and local services. Together, the national charity and local groups ensure people with lung conditions get both the big changes that improve care for everyone and the personal connections that make life easier day to day.