A kind teenager says McDonald’s staff told her they 'do not serve homeless people' as she was trying to buy a meal for an elderly man.

Charlotte Farrow, 19, visited McDonald’s on Oxford Road for breakfast and decided to buy breakfast for an elderly homeless man after spotting him nearby.

But she claims staff at the fast food chain told her they could not serve homeless people as part of a ‘new policy’.

McDonald’s has since apologised for the confusion and said there is no policy not to serve homeless people and this will be reiterated to all staff.

Charlotte - who briefly worked in McDonald’s herself - was on her way to work last Thursday when she spotted an elderly homeless man and decided to buy him breakfast.

She said: “We queued up and the homeless guy tried to get some money out before I told him I was paying. Then the supervisor said ‘we don’t serve homeless people’. He said the business manager told them they weren’t allowed to serve homeless people. They said it was a new policy.

“It was his attitude towards the guy - we were both customers so there shouldn’t be any difference.

“I think it’s absolutely awful and completely immoral. We’re all human beings. I wouldn’t expect to be treated like that. If they’re refusing to serve homeless people it’s extremely judgemental.”

Both were served a meal after the initial dispute.

Charlotte is currently homeless herself but lives with her boyfriend in Rochdale. She said McDonald’s ‘bogus policy’ has put her off using the chain again.

A McDonald’s spokesman said they have reviewed CCTV which shows the homeless man was served before Charlotte went in. They said it also shows both customers later being served at the restaurant but company’s policy was ‘incorrectly communicated’ by staff.

‘Both the customer and the gentleman she was buying food for were served. It is not a McDonald’s policy to refuse to serve homeless people and all staff have been reminded of this.’

The incident comes just days after landscape gardener Daniel Jackson claimed he was refused a meal at the same restaurant because he ‘looked like a homeless person’.

Daniel, 27, was wearing outdoor work clothes when he claimed a manager said the company had a ‘zero tolerance policy’ to serving homeless people. The chain has since apologised.