What is Pair Review? — UK Software Development Guide
Direct Answer
Pair review (or paired code review) is the practice of two developers reviewing code changes together simultaneously, rather than independently. One developer walks through their changes while the other observes, questions, and provides immediate feedback. Pair review is faster than asynchronous PR review for complex or security-critical changes, and catches different types of issues through real-time discussion.
Pair-review in the UK
Pair review complements asynchronous PR review in ClickMasters projects. For UK regulated software: security-critical code (authentication, access control, personal data handling) benefits from pair review rather than async review alone — real-time discussion catches logical errors that written review comments miss. WCAG 2.1 compliance review is often done as paired review between a developer and an accessibility specialist. For NHS DTAC Domain 3 evidence: documented pair review sessions for security-critical components strengthen the technical security evidence pack.
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