Part of a global voluntary network, responding to conflicts, natural disasters and individual emergencies, the Barbados Red Cross Society was founded in 1960 as apart of the British Red Cross. The Parliament of Barbados passed the Barbados Red Cross Act in 1966, the same year that Barbados became a country independent of the United Kingdom.

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The organisation has a fundamental duty to bring relief to persons affected by a disaster. As an auxiliary to government, it does not assume responsibility for governmental functions but supports the work of national authorities. Working in collaboration with the Department of Emergency Management (DEM), and other disaster management agencies, the Barbados Red Cross seeks to ensure effective relief to the most vulnerable at all levels of the Barbadian communities. 

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