Alison is a Professor of Dermatology at Hull York Medical School and holds a position as Honorary Consultant Dermatologist, Harrogate and District NHS Foundation Trust, where she works clinically.
She also holds senior leadership positions as the Clinical Lead at Hull York Medical School Skin Research Centre, University of York and Associate Medical Director for Research and Innovation, at Harrogate and District NHS Foundation Trust.
Alison is an internationally recognised academic dermatologist and senior clinical leader with over 25 years’ experience in clinical practice, research leadership and education. She holds a substantive Chair in Dermatology at Hull York Medical School and holds an honorary clinical position at Harrogate and District NHS Foundation Trust and Leeds Teaching Hospitals Trust.
She provides academic and clinical leadership across Hull York Medical School, the University of York and Hull, NHS partners and regional research networks, supporting the development of translational research, innovation, clinical trials and dermatology education. Clinically, she runs a nationally recognised supra regional acne service and has played a key role in developing comprehensive dermatology services and research infrastructure within the NHS.
Alison’s current interests centre on acne and the clinical sequelae of scarring and pigmentary change, with a particular focus on their long term physical, psychosocial and quality of life impact. Her work places strong emphasis on women’s health, including acne associated with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) and hormonally mediated disease across the life course.
She is developing and validating non invasive imaging and assessment technologies, alongside digital tools and patient reported measures, to improve objective and patient centred evaluation of disease severity, scarring and treatment response. This is closely integrated with translational research exploring biomarkers, including microbiome, immunological and molecular markers, to better understand pathophysiology, stratify disease and inform personalised treatment approaches. Public and patient engagement underpins this work, with active involvement of patients in study design, outcome prioritisation and dissemination, particularly in relation to stigma, mental wellbeing and lived experience of PCOS, acne and the resultant sequelae.
Alison has secured substantial competitive research funding as clinical lead and co-applicant on grants to support translational and clinical research in dermatology, with a particular focus on acne, inflammatory skin disease, outcome measurement and antimicrobial resistance.
She was co‑clinical lead and Principal Investigator on the NIHR Health Technology Assessment (HTA)–funded SAFA trial (£1.9m), a large pragmatic multicentre randomised controlled trial evaluating spironolactone as an alternative to long‑term antibiotics for adult female acne. Published in The BMJ (2023), this study provides high‑quality evidence to inform future NICE and European evidence based guidance and supports antimicrobial stewardship.
Alison is also a co‑applicant and Principal Investigator on a further NIHR Programme Grant (£1.7m) examining interventions for acne treatment, and on the NIHR HTA ACNE‑ID study (£2.2m) investigating optimal dosing strategies for oral isotretinoin.
Internationally, she was co‑lead on a National Institutes of Health (NIH) grant ($607k) supporting the development of standardised core outcome measures for acne clinical trials. This work underpins the Acne Core Outcome Research Network (ACORN) and has had significant global impact on dermatology trial design with strong patient and public involvement.
In addition, Alison was a co‑investigator on MRC‑funded awards contributing to the development of a Controlled Human Infection Model (CHIM) for cutaneous leishmaniasis, led through the University of York.
She has held Investigator‑led grants from the British Skin Foundation and industry partners, supporting research into antimicrobial resistance, acne scarring, skin microbiome science and patient‑reported outcomes. She continues to act as Chief or Principal Investigator for a broad portfolio of NIHR portfolio studies, national registers and translational research programmes.
Alison is a member of the Experimental Medicine and Biomedicine research group.
Alison contributes to undergraduate and postgraduate teaching at Hull York Medical School. She supervises medical students, specialty trainees and academic clinical fellows, supports clinical academic career development, and contributes to the development of dermatology education for doctors and allied health professionals recently leading on and implementing an accredited practical Dermatology course.
Alison has published extensively in high‑impact international journals with a current H-index of over 60. She is a lead or invited author for European evidence‑based acne guidelines and major dermatology textbooks, including Rook’s Textbook of Dermatology and the Oxford Textbook of Medicine. She has a sustained international citation record.
Alison’s most influential publications include the NIHR‑funded SAFA trial (BMJ, 2023), European S3 acne treatment guidelines (JEADV), international core outcome set development through ACORN (JID, BJD), and high‑impact work on adolescent acne (The Lancet Child & Adolescent Health), antimicrobial resistance, psychosocial burden and acne scarring. Her translational collaborations also include work published in Nature Medicine on controlled human infection models for leishmaniasis.
Alison works collaboratively with national and international academic, NHS and industry partners across Europe, North America, Africa and Asia, supporting multidisciplinary, translational and clinical research programmes in dermatology.
Alison supervises PhD, MD, MRes and MSc students and mentors academic clinical fellows, providing supervision in translational research, clinical trials and outcome measure development.
- International Lead, Acne Core Outcome Research Network (ACORN)
- Regional Dermatology Lead, NIHR Research Delivery Network (Yorkshire & Humber)
- Member, UK Dermatology Clinical Trials Network Prioritisation Panel
- Contributor to national and international guideline and advisory groups
- Chair of two Trial Steering committees