Yorkshire Water is to spend £5m improving drinking water quality in Bradford by upgrading two local treatment works.

The work at Chellow Heights and Graincliffe Water Treatment Works will form part of a £500m investment programme by the Bradford-based utility company over the next 12 months.

The company will be spending £400million between now and April 2012 as it launches into the second phase of its five-year plan to deliver £1.9 billion worth of improvements to its water and sewer infrastructure – over £1,000 per household across Yorkshire – by 2015.

The company has already spent £300m on significant infrastructure and maintenance work, with a number of major projects already under way including £110m to improve bathing water quality along Yorkshire’s East Coast, £100m to reduce the number of sewer flooding incidents and £92m to improve the quality of drinking water and boost the security of supplies.

Charlie Haysom, director of Yorkshire Water’s asset delivery unit, said: “As a company, we don’t just pump water into our region. We also pump millions of pounds into the local economy, with this investment supporting the region’s economic growth at a time when it is most needed.

“We’re committed to being the best water company in the UK and whilst we do many things well, we recognise that there’s still more we can do.

“To help us achieve this goal, we’re already well under way with our most ambitious spending programme ever, investing £1.9billion between 2010 and 2015 to improve water quality, protect the environment and maintain our infrastructure for the future.

‘‘Our customers can have confidence that we will deliver the programme on time and within the budget set by our regulator Ofwat, with the benefits of this work and massive investment being felt right across the region.”