Instead of regulars being given a free coffee after five visits and a half price lunch after 10, a homeless person will be given a free meal and a drink for every 10 visits a customer makes.

The idea for the new selfless loyalty card came about after customers suggested they would like to donate their freebies to those less fortunate.

Founder Josh Littlejohn said: “We had a lot of customers wondering if they could give their free coffees and discounted lunches to the homeless instead of keeping them for themselves.

“We’ve realised there is a real culture of people wanting to help people less fortunate than themselves - and if they can do that in their daily routines it’s a real bonus.

“This is the next step in making sure no homeless people go hungry and we hope other businesses will follow suit.”

Social Bite operates a ‘suspended’ coffee and food programme where customers can pay for a hot drink or food for a homeless person.

The business gives 100 per cent of profits to charities including Shelter Scotland, Vision Eye Care Hospital in Bangladesh, the MicroLoan Foundation in Malawi and Zambia, and the STV Appeal.

Social Bite currently has cafes in Edinburgh, Glasgow and opened an Aberdeen store just last month. A quarter of its workforce is formerly homeless.

Customers also have the chance to win dinner with Hollywood star and humanitarian George Clooney who visits the Edinburgh shop in November.

@SocialBite_