A MUSEUM has planned a thank you for some of its best customers.

Middlesbrough Council believes many grandparents encourage youngsters to visit its museums.

And as National Grandparents' Day falls this weekend, grandparents are being offered free admission to the town's Captain Cook Birthplace Museum as a thank you - as long as they are accompanied by their grandchildren.

Senior curator Phil Philo said: "According to our visitor research, grandparents are one of the main motivators and ambassadors in encouraging others to visit our museum and to take part in our events.

"We thought that it would be great if kids brought their grandparents along for a free visit during this important weekend as a special thank you for their helpful suggestions. It is often the grandparents that find out about events we are hosting or through visiting themselves. They then encourage their families to visit us.''

This summer, more than 10,000 people visited the museum, which is gearing up for the 275th anniversary of the birth of Captain Cook and the museum's 25th anniversary.