A firm specialising in advising local authorities has apologised after a series of social media posts seemed to revel in a tribunal judgment in a special educational needs case.

Buckinghamshire firm Baker Small made a series of Twitter posts on Saturday evening about a ‘win’ which had ‘sent some parents into a storm’. The firm continued: ‘It is always a great win when the other side thinks they won!’

Tweets included a picture of a kitten that appears to be yawning, with the message: ‘Some great tweets received today from people who just see a one-sided argument… just shared them with my cat… .’

The following day, the firm’s managing director Mark Small had posted an apology from its Facebook and Twitter accounts.

The response acknowledged previous tweets had caused a ‘great deal of upset and offence’, with ‘full and appropriate action’ to be taken to address the matter.

Small said: ‘We take our position as legal advisers to public bodies and also to parents very seriously and we recognise the complex nature of the SEN and disability legal system.

‘We have tweeted our experiences many times and engaged in tweets with our followers about the daily challenges of that system.

‘It is with regret that yesterday, tweets were sent from us which were not acceptable regardless of the context.’

Baker Small later pledged to make a donation to Children’s Hospice South West following the exchange of posts.

A template complaint letter has been circulated on social media, with people encouraged to raise the issue with the Solicitors Regulation Authority.

An SRA spokesperson said: 'We take all complaints seriously and will examine all the available evidence before deciding on an appropriate course of action.'