THE WATER will not return to Bradford’s Mirror Pool for another month and a half – and the fountains will remain out of action until November, the Telegraph & Argus has been told.

Bradford Council has also revealed that the repair bill will be approaching a quarter of a million pounds, to be funded by money set aside to cover "unexpected costs" such as this.

Detailed investigations into the damage caused two months ago have now been completed. It has emerged that an increase in water pressure and flow rate of the gravity-fed mains water supply weakened the holding tank’s pipework, causing it to fail.

After the burst on April 14, a thorough assessment has been carried out by Fountain Workshop, the firm which designed, built and maintains the water feature.

Last night, a Bradford Council spokesperson said: “People will be able to again enjoy the mirror pool from early August while contractors work behind the scenes to repair and update the fountains system which will be back to full operation this November.

“Due to the nature of the repairs, there will be periods of time when the mirror pool will have to be shut down.

“The repairs are expected to cost approximately £230,000 which will be paid for from funds which the Council has set aside to cover repairs, replacements and any unexpected costs such as this.”

The Mirror Pool officially opened in 2012 and this is the first time a major issue has hit the feature. It is also the first time it has been out of action for such a long period of time.

The Council is set to take the opportunity to upgrade the attraction with state-of-the-art technology that has become available since it opened.

The spokesman said: “The system will be upgraded to take advantage of significant technology advances which have occurred in the last eight years. This will include the development and installation of a bespoke web-based system to give greater management and maintenance capability for monitoring, analysis and control."

The time taken to get the facility back up and running has been a source of frustration for some Bradfordians, and the Council was keen to outline why it had taken this long.

The spokesman said: "In the past weeks, the Council and our contractors have been working hard evaluating the flood damage and putting together plans for the repairs.

“This has taken some time due to the need for the electronics to dry out allowing for careful testing of the system.

City Park is a world-class facility. Sourcing highly specialised pumps, controls and other components, and planning to assemble the high tech replacement system has also been time-consuming.

“Following its installation in 2011, the Mirror Pool has been carefully maintained, however, over the years an increase in water pressure and flow rate of the gravity-fed mains water supply weakened the holding tank’s pipework causing it to fail.

“The new upgraded system will feature additional measures to prevent this happening again."

The Council has been working with organisers of events to bring alternative attractions to the Mirror Pool area, with Bradford Literature Festival confirming it is bringing the water park to City Park - albeit temporarily - during its event which begins later this month.

There will be two large pools each weekend day of the festival as part of the free family fun days, with zorbing and boating pools to sit alongside the rest of their activities.

These will be in place on June 29 and 30, and July 6 and 7.

Last month the Telegraph & Argus was given a tour of the out-of-action plant room in City Park.

At the time Claire Wilkinson, the Council’s economic development manager, outlined how staff were alerted to the burst pipe due to an alarm going off in the plant room.

“The water had come with such force, you can see where it has shattered the pipe,” she added.

The award-winning Mirror Pool contains the highest fountain in any British city, capable of shooting water up to 30 metres into the air.

It was part of the £24.6m re-development of the area to create an urban park in the heart of the city.