As a newspaper covering a wide and varied district, it is the job of the Telegraph & Argus to report all the news, whether it is good or bad.

Very often it is the less palatable news that makes the headlines, but we always endeavour to balance this with reports of the good things that people are doing across the district, to help others in their communities or the wider world.

That's especially important at this time of year, and at Christmas the Telegraph & Argus also likes to make some good news itself, through the Gannett Foundation, the charitable arm of the newspaper's parent company.

Every year the Gannett Foundation invites grant applications from worthy causes across our circulation area, and this year we are delighted to report that five groups have received grants totalling almost £28,000.

The work these groups do - from tackling homelessness to working with mental health issues to supporting cancer patients and their families - really is the sort of thing that keeps our communities ticking over.

We hope that the money provided through the Gannett Foundation will allow them to continue their good work and will encourage others to follow their lead with such admirable acts of selflessness.

Last year, the Gannett Foundation awarded grants of more than £300,000 across the various districts served by newspapers in our group in the UK.

It's our way of saying thank you to those individuals and organisations who try to make life better in ways big and small, and we can't think of a better time of year to do so.

We hope you all have a merry Christmas, whatever you're doing.