An organisation set up to promote the South West's museums, libraries and archives has awarded a final grant of £150,000 before it closes down on 31 March in order to make way for a new integrated national and regional body.

In the last seven years, the Museums, Libraries and Archives Council (MLA) South West has awarded almost £1.8m to a number of projects across the region, and its £150,000 grant to the New Expressions programme is to be its last contribution following a shake-up of the MLA structure. New Expressions, an Arts Council England (ACE)-funded scheme aims to create a fresh relationship between museums, artists and audiences with a series of exhibitions and installations across the South West during the spring and summer.

Falmouth Art Gallery is one of the venues to have run a New Expressions project. Director Brian Stewart said: "New Expressions helped artists, staff and visitors see Falmouth Art Gallery' existing collection in new and exciting ways." Set up in 1959, the South West's Area Museums Council was the first of its kind in the UK and was extended to incorporate archives and libraries in 2002. MLA South West also became an integral part of the government's renaissance initiative, which invests £5m in the region's museums each year.