Delegates at national roads policing conference look to future

Hundreds of road safety professionals and roads policing leaders gathered last week for the UKROEd/NPCC Roads Policing Conference 2025.

Taking place on 21 and 22 October at the Radisson Hotel Manchester Airport, the Conference – now in its fifth year – brought together academics, campaigners, policy makers and police officers to share insights into their work and place a focus on the latest and upcoming developments in the sector.

Adopting the theme, ‘The Road Ahead: Shaping the future through recognition, influence and ambition’, the two-day conference was packed with high-quality inputs from some of the leading voices in road safety and policing from across the UK.

The Conference was opened with a welcome from UKROEd Chair Peter Strachan, followed by Chief Constable Jo Shiner KPM, National Lead for Roads Policing, and UKROEd’s Chief Operating Officer Jon Robertson, who set the scene for the next two days.

Keynote speakers for the Conference were Nick Harris, chief executive of National Highways who spoke on the first day about the vast network of roads and motorways in the UK and how important their relationship with the police was to make every journey safer.

The second keynote speaker was Prof Tim Nutbeam, a consultant in Emergency Medicine and Prehospital Emergency Medicine whose work on extrication and post-collision research for the last decade at the IMPACT Centre is transforming how emergency services treat casualties at the scene of collisions and significantly improving their chances of survival.

Other guest speakers included Chief Supt Sam Donaldson (PSNI), Dr Nick Reed (Reed Mobility), Alison Thomas and Kaarina Ruta (Welsh Government), George Henry (Transport Scotland), Joy Allen (PCC for Durham), Chief Supt Marc Clothier (Sussex Police), Prof David Crundall (Nottingham Trent University), Kevin McCallum (Polaris), Alan Hiscox and Amy Hilton (British Horse Society), Ross Moorlock (Brake) and Paul Steinberg (The Road Safety Trust).

There were also opportunities for questions and debate across the four conference sessions, while an extensive exhibition area offered an ideal backdrop for more informal networking and discussion during the refreshment breaks.

UKROEd Chief Operating Officer Jon Robertson said: “The UKROEd/NPCC Roads Policing Conference has once again been a tremendous success.

“It was fantastic to share and learn about some of the exciting and impactful work that is taking place right now within the road safety arena, while also looking ahead to what’s on the horizon for the sector.

“There was a real buzz in the venue across the two days, and it felt like some real momentum was building to support each other in achieving our vision of zero deaths and serious injuries on our roads.”

A highlight of the event was the UKROEd/NPCC Roads Policing annual awards. A glittering ceremony was enjoyed by 250 guests, with eight winners – four for UKROEd awards and four for NPCC Roads Policing – receiving a tremendous reception from those attending.

The biggest cheer of the evening was reserved for the recipient of the Chief Constable’s Lifetime Achievement award, Dean Hatton, who has dedicated his career to reducing risk on our roads, firstly in his capacity as a police officer and more recently by working within the national roads policing portfolio to help support the work of UKROEd.

Chief Constable Jo Shiner, National Lead for Roads Policing, said: “Reducing the number of deaths on UK roads is our collective responsibility and the UKROEd/NPCC Conference is always a valuable opportunity to collaborate and share learnings with our colleagues, partners and peers.

“The awards demonstrate the huge wealth of commitment and best practice across the sector and I would like to congratulate all of the winners and nominees.”