paul@newtonnews.co.uk
in the community, with the community, for the community

It is a truism that our children are the future, and beyond dispute that it is one of the main duties of any generation to give its children the best chance possible in life. In a world of austerity, impossible house prices and ‘gig’ work, it is a frequently-expressed fear that the upcoming generation might be the first generation for many years actually to end up worse-off than its parents’.
• Which is why the Newton News was pleased to note the article: ‘Strategy to Ensure County Durham is a Great Place to Grow Up’, which describes the County Council’s policy for improving services and life opportunities for young people in the County. The full report is even more impressive, and is well worth reading if you access it online. It is especially pleasing to read the extent to which the Council has sought the views of, and listened to, our young people as it compiled its report.
• Like most people, we find it hard to keep abreast of the new words entering our language from youth culture and the internet, so the article: ‘Pin Back Yer Lugs at Lost Dialects’ was a nostalgic pleasure.
In a past age, society’s wisdom was passed down in the form of proverbs and folk-sayings, and the words those people used remind us of the conditions and structures of the world in which they lived.
So we thoroughly enjoyed reading about the Lost Dialects initiative … and we defy anybody to read the article without remembering with affection: ‘the things my grandma used to say’!
• Syd Howarth never sought recognition for the things he did, but he would have been delighted to know that one day the community he loved would decide to name a road (there are no ‘streets’ in Newton Aycliffe) after him.
Syd’s family and friends at the Newton News loved and respected Dad; and we are touched to see how much the wider Great Aycliffe community loved and respected him too, illustrated in the honour accorded him by the Town Council.
We hope that the existence of, perhaps, a ‘Syd Howarth Way’ will remind future residents, not just of a prominent and popular citizen, but of the charity and kindness that motivated his life and community-building.