Darlington College of Technology's proposed move to a new £27m centre has the potential to be one of the most important developments in the town for a generation.

With 15,000 students from across the region, and more than 500 staff, the college's future must be planned with extreme care.

The planned move to Morton Palms, on the outskirts of the town - almost certainly the Torrington's site - will not be without controversy.

There will be some who object to the move because they have a deep affection for an educational establishment with roots going back more than a century.

There will be reaction to the land being turned into a housing development.

And there will be inconvenience for college users living in the West End of the town.

While we acknowledge that these are important considerations, we welcome news of the college's move because we believe it represents a visionary and exciting investment in the town's future.

It will provide Darlington with a modern college complex which will be the envy of many towns, and will open up further education to more people than can be accommodated at the present site where growth is restricted.

It will also place education at the heart of the Morton Palms site, which is growing rapidly in terms of its strategic importance to the Tees Valley.

But, as with the development of Darlington Football Club's new stadium in Neasham Road, careful consultation with the local community is vital.

It has to be said that the consultation process has not got off to a good start with an administrative error leading to the college land being prematurely advertised for sale.

A feasibility study has been undertaken but this is just the beginning and a lot of talking - and listening - needs to be done before the vision becomes a reality.

Those discussions are crucial if the whole of the Darlington community is to embrace a proposal which could have a very significant impact on Darlington and the wider region for many years to come.