Currently, 80% of York's households are within an SCA. The new citywide approach will ensure consistent rules for all residents, helping to reduce harmful smoke emissions from solid fuel burning - a major contributor to fine particulate matter (PM2.5) pollution.

PM2.5 is an invisible killer, linked to serious health conditions including asthma, lung cancer, and heart disease. In York, exposure to PM2.5 is estimated to contribute to the equivalent of 1 in every 23 deaths.

In a SCA, residents can continue to use stoves and open fires, provided they burn correctly seasoned dry wood in DEFRA-approved stoves or use authorised smokeless fuels in open fires or non-approved stoves.

The ‘Ready to Burn' mark helps to easily identify solid fuels that are legal to burn at home.

The changes will come into effect no sooner than six months from the date of the order, giving residents time to prepare. Enforcement will focus on education first, with penalties only as a last resort.

Councillor Jenny Kent, executive member for the environment and climate emergency, said: ‘Expanding the Smoke Controlled Area will make York a healthier place for everyone, ending the postcode lottery for clean air and applying the same rule across the city. This is not about banning stoves or open fires, it is about burning the right fuels in the right way and helping to protect our children, elderly and vulnerable neighbours.

Dr Caroline Everett, a respiratory consultant at York and Scarborough Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, said: 'PM2.5 particles from wood smoke can penetrate deep into the lungs and bloodstream, increasing the risk of heart disease and cancer as well.

‘We also know that these particles are linked to asthma in children, whose lungs are still developing and are therefore more vulnerable to the effects of air pollution.

‘These changes to the Smoke Control Area in York will ensure that we all have cleaner air to breathe and will help prevent avoidable illness, keeping people with respiratory conditions healthier and able to live fuller lives for longer.'

Peter Roderick, director of Public Health for York, said: ‘Solid fuel burning accounts for nearly a third of PM2.5 emissions in York. There are no safe levels of these particles - they harm everyone, especially children and older people.

‘Expanding the Smoke Control Area is a proportionate, evidence-based step to protect health and reduce preventable deaths.'