A £36,000 grant has been given to "keep the spirit of the Museum of St Albans alive" while its collections are in storage for more than a year during the move to its new city centre building.

The current museum, in Hatfield Road, is planned to close in September so the site can be redeveloped into housing.

But the new museum and art gallery is not set to open at the Town Hall until 2017.

The Arts Council England funding will help Lyndall Phelps, as artist-in-residence, to produce a series of artworks over the next few years that document the museum’s origins, collections and future changes.

This will include a legacy piece for the new museum and art gallery and a series of community events.

Hedley Swain, form Arts Council England, said: “We are delighted to support the Museum of St Albans’ legacy art project through our grants for the arts programme.

"It will be exciting to see how Lyndall’s work ensures that the museum’s wonderful treasures remain visible and accessible to the public whilst it is closed for relocation to a new building.”

Staff and volunteers are currently packing up museum exhibits to go into storage until they are required for display at the new museum.

Lyndall is working alongside the team, using the experience to provide inspiration for an installation that will go on display in the empty museum later this year.

The artwork will be shown within the remaining display cabinets and interpretation boards to 'echo' items that have been removed.

Lyndall will also exhibit documents and objects from the museum’s archive and off-site store that relate to St Albans’ past.

The Cambridgeshire-based artist will also work with a community group to create a piece of public art that will go on display in Easter 2017.

Cllr Annie Brewster, portfolio holder for Heritage at St Albans City and District Council, said: “This wonderful grant from Arts Council England will fund an artist to help keep the spirit of the Museum of St Albans alive during the development of our new museum and art gallery in the heart of the City.

"Both the exhibition and the exciting new artwork being created will pay homage to the origins of the Hatfield Road museum.”