HOW Darlington folk must look with envy at Shildon which is in the process of receiving more than £1/2m to bolster its museum.

How Darlington folk must look with envy at York where this weekend the National Railway Museum became one of a handful outside London to benefit from the Government's excellent scheme to make museum admission free for all.

How Darlington folk must look with envy at Hartlepool which has just won an International Maritime Heritage Award for its work on HMS Trincomalee, the oldest warship afloat in Britain.

All these ideas, grants and awards mean a higher profile for Shildon, York and Hartlepool which in turn means more people visiting which in turn means more money for local people who run guesthouses, shops and pubs.

Yet not in Darlington, the birthplace of the railways. Darlington does have a five-year scheme to transform its railway history into a World Heritage Site, but last month's sudden departure of the man who drew up the scheme has left its future uncertain.

Congratulations to Shildon, which is now off to seek more money from the regional development agency One NorthEast and the European Regional Development Fund as its £7m plans for a new railway museum come closer to fruition.

But the people of Darlington must feel that they are in danger of missing the boat - or should that be train?

BRINGING up children has never been easy, but modern technology is throwing up modern problems that a previous generation of parents did not have to face.

As Christmas approaches, parents will be coming under pressure to buy their children computers. Parents know that computers can be immensely educational tools. They also know that if their children are to progress in the modern world, they have to feel at home when using a computer.

But this morning the Government is launching a valuable campaign reminding parents of the downside of computers. The campaign Wise Up To The Net is tackling the disturbing way that paedophiles are able to target children over the Internet.

A recent survey that found that four out of five children under 16 said they had encountered pornography when surfing the Net.

While computers can provide a boon to a child's development and their use should be encouraged by parents, it is clear that even in the bedroom or a study, a watchful eye must be kept on how they are being used.