Bradford Beck - Academy

East of the arches is a system often referred to as ‘bombay mix’ which carries the Eastbrook through a series of older and much smaller Victorian brick sewers with some newer CSO’s added later. The air can be quite fowl in that section and we headed south instead towards the academy.

Following the 8ft RCP for around half a mile we encounter multiple surface water run offs coming in from small pipes above. A junction with a long concrete stair case interests from the left where the bowling beck comes in.  At the top of this stair case another junction emerges with the left hand side a small brick sewer seemingly dry offering another route into bombay mix.

Back down the stairs and carrying on south we arrive at a steeper set of stairs. At the top of these stairs a sharp bend leads us to the large screening chamber in academy.A screening chamber is a section of the sewer where screens or grates are used to remove large solid materials from the wastewater flow before it moves further into the system.

Previous reports show this empty and presumably operational but in recent years it seems to have built up a large pool of foul still water presumably blocked. Having covered a lot of the system we retraced our steps and headed back out into the daylight.

History

“The Bradford Beck has shaped the landscape and history of Bradford for centuries. Originating in medieval times, it begins as a number of springs located around Keelham, west of Bradford. These small springs merge to form Bradford Dale, which is further fed by various streams flowing towards the city centre, coming together to form what is now known as the Bradford Beck. Historically, the beck was an essential watercourse for early settlers and industries, but as Bradford industrialised during the 19th century, it became heavily polluted, known as one of the filthiest streams in England by Victorian times. The beck was gradually culverted through the expanding city to manage both sanitation and flood risks. However, serious flooding remained a persistent issue, with one of the earliest well-documented events occurring in 1866. Throughout the 20th century, the original aging Victorian culverts, including sections nicknamed ‘Bombay Mix’, struggled to cope with storm flows, leading to regular flooding in the city”.