Plans to relocate the Open Eye Gallery in Liverpool to Mann Island on the city’s waterfront have received a £400,000 funding boost from the Northwest Regional Development Agency.

This follows a recent £100,000 National Lottery grant from Arts Council England, North West.

Currently located in the Ropewalks area of the city, the gallery is the only specialist public photography gallery in the North West.

The new gallery will be part of the £135m mixed-use scheme being developed by Countryside Properties and Neptune Developments to the south of Pier Head.

The gallery is being designed by RCKa architects and will be double the size of the current location. The two main gallery spaces will be on the ground floor, with archive space and offices on a mezzanine level above.

Patrick Henry, Open Eye Director, said: “We want to build on our track record as a world-class gallery by relaunching in new premises and significantly raising our game as one of the UK’s leading spaces for photography.

"Our new galleries will provide more exhibition space, in which we will present cutting-edge work by emerging and established artists. We’ll also be able to present work from our extensive print archive and offer more opportunities for people to get involved and learn about photography.”

Liverpool’s waterfront already boasts a host of cultural attractions including the Tate Liverpool, the New Museum of Liverpool, the Maritime Museum, the International Slavery Museum and the Beatles Story.

The new Open Eye Gallery is scheduled to open in late 2010.