About Us

We are a Community Interest Company (CIC), the national platform where health and care leaders, innovators, and researchers turn data into real-world, open, and properly evaluated solutions.

Data visualisation and technology representing health and social care analytics
We enjoy our craft
Credibility, co-design and impact are the qualities we crave

Connecting Data,
For Social Good.

The Data Observatory CIC isn't just another organisation — it is the movement that the health and social care data space has been waiting for. We are not a data repository, we don't sit in ivory towers writing reports that gather dust.

The Data Observatory is the UK's first dedicated think tank for data and analytics in Health and Social Care. We are here to connect, co-design, and deliver. We help make things happen.

Impact-led

We turn insights into action.

Agile

We are designed to adapt and scale.

Credibility

We focus on delivery, not just ideas.

Executive Board

Meet the visionaries, strategists, and analytics experts dedicated to transforming health and social care through data insights.

Rony Arafin

Rony Arafin

Chief Executive Officer

Former CEO - AphA, Deputy National Chair - CDAON, Director of Insights - BHF

Dr Marc Farr

Dr Marc Farr

President

National Chair - NHS Chief Data and Analytical Officers Network, CAO - NHS Kent and Medway ICB

Dr Huw Davies

Dr Huw Davies

Chief Operating Officer

Director - Davies Furlong Consulting, Commercial Director - AphA

Kate Cheema

Kate Cheema

Chief Impact Officer

Director of Evaluation & Insights - UCL Partners

Kay Khan

Kay Khan

Chief Strategy Officer

Founder and Chief Data Officer - KeyAnalytics, Co-Chair: Women in Health Data Network

Lizzie Stuart-Bennett

Lizzie Stuart-Bennett

Company Secretary

Lizzie is an exceptional Company Secretary, keeping the entire team organised.

TBC

TBC

Chief Transformation Officer

To be announced soon.

Sukhmeet Panesar

Sukhmeet Panesar

Advisor to Board

Fractional CxO, Founder - thynkNu, Chief Evangelist

Data Observatory Council

The Data Observatory Council is a powerhouse of industry leaders who live and breathe health and social care data every single day, ensuring our work remains rigorous, ethical, and genuinely impactful where it matters most.

Hassan Chaudhury

Hassan Chaudhury

Chair of Council

Neil Morgan

Neil Morgan

Deputy Chair

Sarah Jenkins

Sarah Jenkins

Clinical Governance

David Okonjo

David Okonjo

Public Health Data

David Okonjo

David Okonjo

Public Health Data

Marcus Thorne

Marcus Thorne

Policy Advisor

Anita Patel

Anita Patel

Social Care Lead

Tom Hiddleston

Tom Hiddleston

Research Strategy

Rebecca Lin

Rebecca Lin

Patient Advocacy

Dr Omar Farooq

Dr Omar Farooq

Digital Health

TBC

TBC

Data Ethics

Robert Fox

Robert Fox

Legal Counsel

Priya Singh

Priya Singh

Community Lead

James Wright

James Wright

Technical Advisor

We are committed to Social Good

We are a Community Interest Company with one overarching mission: to help health and social care make the best use of data for social good.

We bring together the brightest minds, the boldest leaders, and the most passionate changemakers to reimagine how data is powered by impact.

Our DNA & The Way We Work

We collaborate, we don't compete

We turn insights into action

We lead with authenticity

We empower a resilient and future-ready data workforce

We care deeply about social good

We are designed to adapt and scale