Thanks for the replies. That makes a lot of sense and I will probably have it proofread before, or as you suggest get some of my kind friends to help out. :)

I'm thinking of paying a professional proofreader to go through my PhD thesis, but not sure when would be the best time. Before I submit, or after the viva and any corrections I have to make for the final version? It's a lot of money and I don't think I could afford to have it proofread more than once. What are everyone's thoughts on this?

Thanks for everyone's insights into this! Having given it some thought and especially after reading about your nightmare experience (poor you!) @Tim, I've decided not to contact the other student for now just incase it doesn't turn out as wondefully as I might like it to - perhaps a bit of overlap isn't that bad, it's not as if the topics are exactly the same. Thanks again :-)

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Hi, I recently found out that somebody at a different university is doing a PhD on a topic related to mine and am worried about originality in my work as there is potentially some overlap.

My supervisor suggests contacting the other student to find out exactly what they’re up to and perhaps being able to help each other and work around each other's topics. On the other hand I am thinking it might be best to just work independently.

I'd really appreciate any thoughts on what would be the best thing to do. Thanks :)