I'm Nathan Tracey. I'm a Police Inspector with Sussex Police, based in Hampshire. This is where I write about the work.

What this site is

Thinking About Policing is a place for evidence-based writing on policing and public policy. It's aimed at senior police leaders, policymakers, academics, and frontline officers who want to read something with a bit more thought behind it than the usual commentary.

The pieces here tend to share a few things in common. They start from data or research where it exists. They acknowledge limits where the evidence is contested. And they try to land a point, rather than just survey the field.

Three sections

The writing falls into three rough buckets.

Police Policy covers the operational and organisational side of policing. Misconduct prevention, officer wellbeing, use of force, neighbourhood policing, evidence-based practice. The stuff that affects how the job is actually done.

Public Policy is wider. Criminal justice, social policy, the political context that shapes what police are asked to do. Sometimes the most useful policing reform isn't a policing reform at all.

Other is for the occasional piece that doesn't fit the two policy sections. For now, that's my work on the Somerton Man code.

About me

I joined policing in my late twenties after a different first career. I work in neighbourhood policing and I do a fair amount of data work alongside the day job, looking at officer assaults, use of force, misconduct trends, and driving standards. I'm interested in early intervention and what we can do upstream of problems rather than downstream of them.

A note on views

Everything here is written in a personal capacity. The views are mine and don't represent Sussex Police, any other employer, or any organisation I'm associated with. Where I draw on research, I'll cite it. Where I'm offering a personal read, I'll say so.

Get in touch

The comments on each article don't require a login, so please join the conversation — questions, challenges, and different perspectives are all welcome. If you'd rather email, you can reach me at ntracey@gmail.com.