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Roads Policing

Roads policing — Authorised Professional Practice

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Summary

The Roads Policing section of the College of Policing's Authorised Professional Practice (APP) focuses on the management of incidents, pursuits, and the investigation of road deaths. It outlines the National Police Chiefs' Council (NPCC) National Roads Policing Strategy for 2022-2025, which centers on preventing harm and saving lives, tackling crime, driving technology and innovation, and changing public perceptions. Police performance is assessed through a framework that monitors fatalities and serious injuries compared to traffic volume. The emphasis is on collaborative partnerships with external agencies to clearly define roles, responsibilities, and expectations. Relevant guidelines from the Association of Chief Police Officers (ACPO) and NPCC are also referenced for operational support.

Key principles

  • 1Preventing harm and saving lives
  • 2Tackling crime
  • 3Driving technology and innovation
  • 4Changing minds
  • 5Partnership working ethos
  • 6Clear roles and responsibilities

Defined terms

National Police Chiefs' Council (NPCC)
An organization that supports police forces in England, Wales, and Northern Ireland.
Association of Chief Police Officers (ACPO)
An organization that provided guidance on policing policies and operations before its dissolution.
Crown Prosecution Service (CPS)
The principal public agency for conducting criminal prosecutions in England and Wales.

Full guidance

This page is from APP, the official source of professional practice for policing.

The National Police Chiefs' Council (NPCC) National Roads Policing Strategy (2022-2025) is built around four key pillars of activity. These are:

preventing harm and saving lives * tackling crime * driving technology and innovation * changing minds

Police performance in delivering the national policing plan is monitored through the police performance assessment framework. This includes recording the number of people killed or seriously injured in police force areas in relation to the volume of traffic.

Forces are encouraged to develop a partnership working ethos and common operating procedures and protocols with external responding and investigative agencies. This will ensure that roles, responsibilities and expectations are clearly defined.

For further information see:

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Reproduced from the College of Policing Authorised Professional Practice under the Open Government Licence v3.0, as captured on 2026-06-27. APP is amended over time — check the source link below for the current version. This is a reference, not operational authorisation.

APP is the authoritative source for UK policing practice and is updated over time. For the current, official version — including any operational detail not reproduced here — go direct.

Read the full APP guidance

Source: College of Policing — Authorised Professional Practice · Crown copyright, licensed under Open Government Licence v3.0. Summary fetched 2026-06-27.