Allen is a Research Fellow within, and a co-director of, the Tobacco Control Research Group (TCRG). His research has primarily focused on investigating the illicit tobacco trade and the relationship that major transnational tobacco companies have with it. This involves exploring the strategies and tactics that tobacco companies use to try and influence policy to address the illicit tobacco trade and the role that tobacco company business practices play in facilitating the illicit tobacco trade. In addition to these broader aims, his research also involves estimating the scale and nature of illicit tobacco trade in various countries (eg. in Malaysia and Ghana). More recently, he has begun to broaden his research focus to explore tobacco industry influence over broader tobacco control policy. Geographically his work focuses largely on the UK, the European Union, as well as Africa, and the Middle East.

Allen holds a PhD in Health from the University of Bath.

Allen has teaching experience in a number of UK Universities. For example, he has taught on Modules within both the Department for Health and Department of Social & Policy Sciences within the University of Bath eg. Contemporary Public Health Issues (BSc. Health and Exercise Science Degree Problem), the Manufacture of Consent (part of multiple programmes including BSc social policy, social sciences and sociology), and Global Crimes of the Powerful (part of multiple programmes including BSc, criminology, social policy, and sociology).  Within the University of West of Scotland (UWS) Allen tought on a variety of modules, ranging from Democracy in the UK, political thought and international politics, through to drug and alcohol studies. He was a regular contributor to the Tobacco Control Interventions Module at the University of Nottingham (2019-2022) and contributed to the Massive Open Online Course ‘Countering tobacco industry influence through agile policy, research and practice’ ran by Imperial College London (2021). He also has guest lectured for the Munk school of Global Affairs & Public Policy, University of Toronto, on the ‘Tobacco Industry Playbook’ module (GLA2068H) within their Master of Global Affairs degree (2024).

Allen has PhD supervision experience, having served as second supervisor for a 4 year PhD studentship (2010-2024). He is interested in lead supervising a PhD, particularly if it relates to illicit trade.