Meet Flying Sam, who's found a unique way to raise care home funds

Samantha is now known as Flying Sam among residents and staff.

Samantha Beattie, deputy care home manager at Balhousie Forth View, took part in a sky dive in November, raising £1500 for the home.

The cash has been used to purchase a laptop, virtual reality headset, three Amazon Echo voice activated services, and a tablet for residents and visitors.

Now known to staff and residents as ‘Flying Sam’, Samantha learned the benefits of VR to the elderly through its training sessions and videos.

The sessions give users the chance to visit ‘virtually’ anywhere, from Paris to their childhood homes.

She said: “I’d watched videos where residents who aren’t able to communicate verbally or even non-verbally all of a sudden are using VR headsets and they come back to life.

“They’ve started talking and singing. I think it just brings back a lot of memories for them, it stimulates their mind.”

Forth View care home manager Gordon Candlish said: “We’re thrilled that, thanks to our own Flying Sam, we can now offer these on a permanent basis.”