After their daughter urinated on This Morning, the ‘off-grid’ Allens defend their heavily-criticised approach to parenting
Inside the bizarre world of the family that has no routine, medicine, bedtimes, TV, toys, suncream... or money
The Brighton couple were furiously slammed on social media for their "off-grid parenting" after their children, son Uylesses, five, and 15-month-old daughter Ostara, ran riot on the show.
Theirs is a world of no routines instilled by their parents. There are no bedtimes, doctors, dentists, medicine, TV, cars, toys, suncream or money.
All of their furniture is 'freecycled' and the skint couple are essentially jobless, save for some work Matt, 33, picks up as a health trainer.
They are currently appealing for donations to fund their dream of living a "self-sustaining" existence in Costa Rica. They've set the target at £100,000 - so far, they've raised just £47.
Despite leaving viewers dumbstruck by their unconventional parenting methods, former nutritionist and yoga instructor Adele, 32, said: "I’m proud that my children are wild and feral, I would rather that than have them living in captivity.
"Every parent has had a leaky nappy incident and what five-year-old doesn’t want to roam free?"
Matt added: "We accept other people’s choices and do not judge them, so why judge us?"
Ignoring the furore sparked by their appearance on This Morning, Adele is still hoping to inspire British parents: "We are not suggesting that everyone lives like us, all we are hoping to do is challenge people’s thinking about parenting and maybe integrate some ideas into their own lives."
Presenters Eamonn Holmes and Ruth Langsford looked on in shock as Ostara answered the call of nature in front of a camera - and scores of viewers subsequently branded the children "feral", claiming the way they were being raised was "dangerous" because no boundaries have been set.
However, Adele insisted: "It is wrong to say we have no rules or boundaries. One of our rules is to do no harm to others and to treat everyone with compassion.
"Of course we don’t always get it right. It’s hard not to fall back on convention and tell your child to 'sit still' or 'we’ll play later, I’m busy', or give them a bag of crisps when they ask, but we let them tell us what they need. They reflect back to us what we show them.
"If Ulysses and Ostara reject our lifestyle when they are older and make their own choices, then that is fine with us. We just want them to be happy."
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But Adele admits her mum doesn't approve of the way she's raising her grandchildren: "My mother has always been very supportive of us as a couple, helping us out over the years, but lately we have agreed to disagree over the way we are bringing up our children."
On the other hand, Matt's childminder mother fully backs the couple. He said: "It can be hard for a family to see you adopt a radically different lifestyle.
"To them, it might feel like a rejection of them personally and the way they brought us up, but it isn’t. Of course they’d like to see us follow a more traditional path, with steady jobs, an income and a foot on the property ladder, but we don’t want to compromise family life, not seeing our children because of the straitjacket of a mortgage.
"Some parents feel compelled to put their babies in childcare because they have to work. Everyone does the best they can, but how does that impact on parent and child?"
Adele had a 'lotus birth' for both of her children - which means she had them at home with no medical staff or midwife present, and left the placenta attached until the umbilical cord dried up and dropped off naturally.
The couple have faced accusations of lazy parenting from shocked Brits.
The children go to sleep when they are tired, eat when they're hungry, wander around barefoot to "connect with the Earth's power", are given Adele's breast milk to cure eye infections and have grazes and wounds licked clean by the family dog.
Adele said: "I believe in the body’s power to heal itself. If you are breast feeding, that builds up your child’s immunity and they are sharing your antibodies.
"Parents are often horrified when we say we haven’t immunised the children, but Ulysses caught scarlet fever from a child who had been vaccinated. If I felt either child was seriously ill or they’d been in an accident, I’d seek medical help. Would I let my children die? No."
Matt added: "We have taken Ulysses to hospital once when he suffered from an asthma attack caused by a severe mould allergy, but by the time the doctor saw him it had cleared and we were told there was nothing they could do for it anyway. His body healed itself."
They've decided not to send Ulysses to school - and only teach him what he wants to learn.
"If Ulysses says one day he wants to go to school, then he can," Adele said.
"We will be guided by him, but he is not missing out as he socialises with other children of all ages."
And as for the future, Adele and Matt are bracing themselves for the possibility of Ulysses and Ostara rejecting their off-grid upbringing - and resenting them for it.
"One day they may reject everything we believe in and become hedge fund managers," Matt said. "That is fine by us. That will be their choice, just as we have made ours."