A DISABLED woman from Worcester was left feeling "embarrassed" and "sad" after she was refused entry to a restaurant with her life-saving support dog.

Anna Malone, 27, was taking friends for a meal out at Cheng Ye in Lowesmoor on Friday night but on arrival was told her dog Bella would not be allowed in.

Despite explaining to staff that Bella was a "working dog" who needed to stay with her at all times, she was told she must leave the animal outside.

"I was embarrassed and I was just really sad that I had bigged this place up," said the student, who ended up eating at a different restaurant nearby.

She continued: "Then I was angry, most of the night I was grumbling. I have ordered takeaways and sat in the window with the dog and it hasn't been a problem."

Miss Malone, who suffers with depression, chronic fatigue syndrome and has Asperger syndrome, says Bella has been trained to help keep her calm and safe in stressful situations.

She explained the five-year-old animal was wearing a jacket emblazoned with the words "support dog please be aware" and said she has been specially trained to assist her.

She said: "When I get overly stressed I do not react as a normal person would. I do not react to my own safety, I will just try and get out. That might mean walking in front of traffic, sometimes I black out.

"But she [Bella] calms me down, she gives me something to be responsible for. She notices when I'm getting stressed. She keeps me safe, she has saved my life a couple of times."

Cheng Ye has since apologised and explained Miss Malone's dog was turned away due to concerns customers may be allergic.

However, under the Equality Act 2010 (EA), people with disabilities have the same right to access services supplied by shops, banks, libraries, pubs, taxis and restaurants as everybody else.

Miss Malone said: "I used to go everywhere with my carer and sometimes I just wanted to go somewhere by myself. She just gives me that independence to go out."

A spokesman for Cheng Ye apologised to Miss Malone and said she will be allowed to bring Bella in the future.

The spokesman said: "She just told me that it is a guide dog. She didn't show any disabled disc or card, or something like that. It is not fair to other customers, they might have allergies.

"I told her you can hold your dog outside but she didn't want to and then she just left. In this case I am so sorry to her."

Rita Howson, chief executive of the Support Dogs charity, explained the laws surrounding assistance dogs can be "unclear".

She said: "We all work to high standards and we do think that that is important. However, the laws and definitions relating to assistance dogs in the UK are so unclear that we do not really understand who has access beyond accredited organisations. That is probably a matter that may need to be taken up with the Minister."