Perthshire school donates tablet devices to local care home to help residents keep in touch with loved ones

In heart-warming intergenerational move, Perthshire school donates tablet devices to local care home to help residents keep in touch with loved ones

A Perthshire school has made a heart-warming intergenerational move and donated a set of tablet devices to Balhousie Pitlochry Care Home to help residents keep up regular contact with family and friends while the home is closed to non-essential visits.

Pitlochry High School, which has close links to the award-winning care home group, made the donation during the UK’s first National Intergenerational Week - which celebrates the bonds that can form across generations.

Gordon Mackenzie, a Modern Languages teacher at Pitlochry High School, saw an online post from the care home on ‘Pitlochry Now’, a local Facebook community group, appealing for any old electronic devices that residents could use to help keep in touch with loved ones. Aware of the close intergenerational links the care home has with the school, Gordon had an idea.

“From speaking with the pupils, I was aware that many of them have relatives in Balhousie Pitlochry Care Home and that they were unable to meet them in person right now because of the country’s Coronavirus situation,” said Gordon. “I found their tales very moving and tried to find out if there was anything the school could do to help.”

The Modern Languages department had some older tablet devices and, with most of today’s pupils having access to their own phones and tablets at home, these tablets were being used less-and-less. “I had been looking for something the tablets could be used for and, when I saw the Facebook post, I knew they could be used for exactly this purpose.”

When Balhousie Care Group closed its doors temporarily to non-essential visits to protect the health of residents, the company issued its 26 care homes with extra iPads to facilitate more communication between residents and their loved ones. But Gordon’s kindheartedness has meant there are lots of devices to go around, said the care home group.

Pitlochry High School is not the only people generously donating. Many other individuals have reached out to the home after seeing their Facebook post and the home now have 10 more laptops and tablets for residents to use.

Sandra Hutton, Home Manager at Balhousie Pitlochry Care Home, said:

“We have been overwhelmed by the kindness of the local community at this very challenging time.  We would like to thank Mr Mackenzie from Pitlochry High School and all the others who have been so generous. Our residents will be calling their loved-ones more than ever with their access to all this technology.”

For more information please visit www.balhousiecare.co.uk

For media enquiries contact Anna Gunn on 07492 163614 or anna.gunn@balhousiecare.co.uk

Image details: Staff and residents at Balhousie Pitlochry Care Home with donations from the local community.

About Balhousie Care Group

Balhousie Care Group was formed 27 years ago to fill a gap in quality residential care in North East Scotland. Today, with 25 homes in the area, it is one of the leading providers of care for the elderly in Scotland, providing care to over 900 residents.

Balhousie Care prides itself on its person-centred approach to care. Putting people right at the forefront of everything they do; it’s inclusive of everyone. They capture this philosophy through the roll out of ‘Together We’re Great’, an initiative which recognises the skills, talents,
attributes and support areas for each and every person involved in the organisation. Together We’re Great aims to value individuality and promote excellence across the organisation.

A Participation Charter - a first-of-its-kind in the care home sector - commits to residents getting a bigger say than ever in the care they receive, from writing care home policies to recruiting staff.

Balhousie Care Group is the recipient of numerous awards. These include three Scottish Care Awards, 2019 Growth Business and 2018 Service Business of the Year at The Courier Business Awards, 2019 Growth Business of the Year Perthshire Chamber of Commerce STAR Award, and SME Scotland Business Man of the Year 2019 for Chairman Tony Banks.