The �7m gallery and museum is due to open this summer

Sarah Bayes, 23, of Guildford, who works at the Lightbox, a �7m gallery due to open in Woking this summer, will spend a week abroad this April.

She will visit four Austrian museums to examine how they work.

Marilyn Scott, Lightbox director, said: "There is a lot we can learn from our European colleagues.

"The Lightbox loves new ideas."

The Future Leaders travel bursary is jointly funded by the British Council and the Museums, Libraries and Archives Council.

It is awarded to help raise awareness of the UK's cultural sector and to create international links with other museums and galleries.

The week-long visit will include visits to the Museum of Modern Art in Carinthia, the Zoom Kinder Museum of Childhood, and the Wien Museum.

Contemporary art

Last month, the Lightbox offered people the chance to have their handprints included in one of its opening installations, called Make Your Mark.

An artist will take all the prints and transform them into a display.

The Lightbox, which is supported by Woking Borough Council, already runs arts activities and projects for local people in the town.

Its new gallery will have exhibitions that change monthly, including contemporary art, loans from other museums and galleries, art and history displays, and events offering the chance to explore science and the natural world.