AFTER spending the last four months dry and empty, the Mirror Pool is back up and running in time for children to enjoy during the summer holidays.

The UK’s largest urban water feature, in City Park is back in action after engineers worked around the clock to fix the pool after a major water leak in the system.

It will now be able to fill up and empty again, and the perimeter fountains are working again, with the pool’s high-quality filtration and water treatment system repaired to produce swimming pool-standard levels of water quality.

The pool closed in April after a major flood occurred in the pool’s pump room.

Repairs have taken so long due to the complexity of electronics, water treatment systems, pumps, valves and fountain management systems in the pump room.

TOP STORIES:

It took several weeks just for the underground system to dry out following the flood.

The actual repair work on highly specialised pumps, controls and other components of the water feature, as well as planning to assemble a high-tech replacement system has also taken a considerable amount of time.

Engineers found that over time water pressure and the flow rate of the gravity-fed water supply weakened the holding tank’s pipework, causing it to fail.

The new upgrade features new measures to prevent a repeat from happening.

Engineers will continue to work on the pool over the next few months, with it expected to be fully operational by November.

The system is also being upgraded to take advantage of technology advances that have occurred since it first opened in 2011.

This includes the development and installation of a bespoke web-based system to give great control over day-to-day management and maintenance.

Councillor Alex Ross-Shaw, portfolio holder for regeneration, planning and transport, said: “We are thrilled to have Bradford’s multi-award winning urban water feature up and running again.

“We all feel a great sense of pride and satisfaction when we see families enjoying the space and shared local people’s disappointment when the mirror pool had to be shut down for repairs.

“Staff and contractors have worked extremely hard to bring our world-class facility back into operation and we look forward to again welcoming residents and visitors back to this much-loved attraction.”

To combat the disappointment of the Mirror Pool’s closure, Bradford Council organised an urban beach to be set up in City Park, measuring 2,605 sq ft and containing 40 tonnes of sand.

It also included striped deckchairs, colourful beach huts and other seaside attractions, and hundreds of families flocked to the city centre to play in the sand and experience a trip to the seaside in Bradford.

The return of the foundations and Mirror Pool is set to be welcomed by Bradford families, with the pool attracting thousands of children every year to play in the water.

Since it opened in March 2012, City Park has won a number of awards and has won praise for a number of design professionals, business people and local residents, as well as changing the face of Bradford city centre.

In 2017, it was awarded a Certificate of Excellence by travel website TripAdvisor.