IT can be a cruel world and there are times when it is easy to lose faith in human nature.

But it is always worth remembering that there is enough kindness around to restore that faith.

Yesterday's edition of The Northern Echo told how the family of a little girl called Hannah Maxwell-Jones are desperately trying to raise £20,000 to help her face the future.

Hannah, who is nearly two, has a severely disfigured face as a result of tumour of the blood vessels, and her parents hope to raise enough funds to take her to Arkansas in America for surgery.

The surgery will still leave Hannah disfigured but, as her mother Allison says, it will make her look "somewhere near to what society expects".

Society expects normality and some readers may have been shocked by the photographs we have published of Hannah. But anyone who looks deeply enough will simply see a lovely little girl with smiling eyes who needs our help.

Her parents have been overwhelmed by the swift public reaction. So strong has it been that donations are already flowing, and an extra telephone line has been required to cope with the calls.

There is no doubt that the £20,000 target will be reached and The Northern Echo will be publishing regular updates on the family's appeal.

But urgently needed though it is, it is not the money which matters most to Hannah's family. It is the reassurance that kindness can overcome prejudice and that ordinary people want to help in all kinds of ways.

Yes, there will be difficulties ahead for Hannah. There will inevitably be some unkindness - it would be nave to believe otherwise. But there is already enough goodness on show to give her family hope.

Please let us know what you are doing to help, because the more the appeal is publicised in newspapers and on television and radio, the more quickly the donations will come in.

And the sooner Hannah will be in a position to face the future with confidence.