Assign a Critical Friend

Find a colleague who can provide support throughout the initiative.

What is a Critical Friend?

A Critical Friend is an independent colleague who peer-reviews your work throughout the project. They ensure:

  • the Problem Definition meets customer needs
  • the project answers the right questions
  • the project uses appropriate methods and draws correct conclusions
  • outputs are coherent and consistent with previous results and other sources
  • outputs are accurate, quality-checked and reproducible
  • the work solves the original problem

They also provide a fresh perspective to catch issues the team may have missed.

Note

The Critical Friend is also known as the Analytical Assurer. For more details, see the NHSBSA Producing Quality Analysis Playbook and The AquA book.

Working with your Critical Friend

Involve the Critical Friend throughout the entire project, from the Problem Definition through to delivery:

  • Meet regularly to keep them updated on progress
  • Review iteratively in small increments, not all at once at the end
  • Plan ahead by including their involvement in your project timeline
  • Give notice and respect their availability when requesting reviews

How to Assign a Critical Friend

  1. Assign early – ideally during the Problem Definition stage
  2. Contact the Data Science team or Data Science Lead for recommendations
  3. Choose wisely:
    • Ideally someone with experience in similar data or techniques
    • If you’re the area expert, consider a newer team member to help them gain experience