A convicted child sex offender lost his job at McDonald's after being pictured serving Happy Meals to children.

Oliver Horwood was sentenced to 16 months' youth custody last year after he pleaded guilty to a number of offences involving children.

When he was 17, the “socially isolated” teenager persuaded girls aged between 13 and 15 to send him sexually explicit pictures of themselves.

Using a false identity to talk to his 10 victims Horwood, from Dartford, then threatened to expose two of the girls online if they did not do as he asked.

This morning pictures appeared on The Sun online website claiming to show Horwood working in the Gravesend branch of McDonald's.

The snaps seem to show him handing a meal, packaged in a box emblazoned with images from kids' movie Despicable Me 3, to a young girl.

The tabloid said it was tipped off about Horwood's new job at the New Road restaurant after a member of the public contacted pervert tracking website UK Database.

The newspaper claimed Horwood, who was wearing a badge with "Oli" written on it, admitted to their reporter that he had been to prison.

But it appears after the photos were published earlier today, Horwood lost his job.

A spokesman for McDonald's told KentOnline's sister paper the Gravesend Messenger: "McDonald’s and its franchisees have strict policies in place when it comes to recruiting employees and matters such as this are taken extremely seriously.

"We can confirm that an investigation was carried out immediately and that the individual no longer works at McDonald’s."

The restaurant chain declined to comment on whether it takes part in any back to work or rehabilitation schemes for former prisoners.

Horwood was 20 when he was sentenced in October last year.

His name will appear on the sex offenders’ register for 10 years.