Faculty Head of Teaching Quality and Learning Enhancement
International Recruitment and Partnerships Office

I currently serve as the Faculty Head of Teaching Quality and Learning Enhancement within the International Recruitment and Partnerships Office. In this role, I am responsible for overseeing all quality assurance matters related to our international and UK-based academic partnerships.

In addition, I am a Senior Lecturer in Criminology and Policing within the Department of Sociological and Psychological Sciences, specialising in policing and criminal justice.

Previously, I was a Senior Police Officer with Strathclyde Police, retiring in 2010 after 30 years of service. During my career, I held several key roles, including Deputy Manager of the Community Initiative to Reduce Violence (CIRV)—a multi-agency programme aimed at reducing gang violence in Glasgow, adapted from a successful model in Cincinnati, USA.

My research interests centre on international criminal justice policy transfer, particularly in violence prevention. My PhD was an in-depth case study examining the transfer of the CIRV model from Cincinnati to Glasgow.

I have a broad interest in policing research and have recently conducted studies on the policing of parades and demonstrations, as well as citizen engagement in policing.

I was a Co-Investigator on a multi-university project examining the impact of organised crime on Scottish communities, which reported to the Scottish Government in May 2018. I also serve as an academic advisor to the National Violence Prevention Board.

In July 2018, I was appointed as a Consultant by Northamptonshire Police to advise on the development of a gang violence reduction programme, drawing on my policing experience and doctoral research.

I conducted an evaluation of Braveheart Industries (Street & Arrow Café) on behalf of the Scottish Violence Reduction Unit. This social enterprise supports the rehabilitation of ex-offenders through workplace training. The evaluation report was completed in April 2020.

I also led a major evaluation project for Police Scotland and the Scottish Police Authority, assessing the Mobile Working Project, which replaced traditional paper notebooks with mobile devices. The final report was submitted in December 2020.

Currently, I am a Co-Investigator on a large-scale evaluation of focused deterrence strategies across five UK sites—this is the most extensive evaluation of its kind globally.

I am an Associate Member of the Scottish Centre for Criminal Justice Research and a member of the Scottish Institute for Policing Research (SIPR), where I sit on the Education and Leadership Network.

William teaches on a variety of modules in the Criminology Degree

CRM211 - Introduction to Policing

CRM310 - Policing in Practice

CRM413 - Policing Communities

William's area of PhD research is in international criminal justice policy transfer, in particular the transfer of a gang project from Cincinnati (USA) to Glasgow.

He is particulary interested in all aspects of police research, given his 30 years experience in Strathclyde Police, retiring in 2010.   

William is curently a Co-Investigator for the Community Impact of Organised Crime on Scottish Communities, funded by the Scottish Government, with colleagues from Stirling and Glasgow Universities.

William is part of a group who have been successful in bidding for a Scottish Government contract worth £152,000 to carry out an evaluation of the impact the Organsided Crime Gangs have on communities in Scotland. This evaluation will commence in August 2016 and will run for 18 months.

William is an integral member of a team from across the UK who are carrying out a 5 year evaluation of 5 sites in the UK who are delivering focused deterrence strategy approach to reduce violence. This is funded by the Youth Endowment Fund and the evaluation part is worth £1.5 million. 

William is a member of the National Violence Prevention Board as an academic advisor.

William has established links with various universities in America, most notably the University of Cincinnati, Georeg Mason University (Washington DC) and Northern Kentucky University.

In May 2025, as part of a yearly visit sonce 2016, he hosted a group of Cincinnati students and staff who were visiting Scotland to learn more about Scottish Criminal Justice matters. They spent time at Abertay University, where they will be learning about Scots Law, policing and forensic science matters and visited the Police HQ in Dundee, as well as Glasgow Sheriff Court and Barlinnie Prison in Glasgow.

William was a Consultant with Northamptonshire Police (from July 2018- June 2020) working with them to establish a violence reduction programme for gangs, Northampton Community Initiative to Reduce Violence (CIRV).