RAPID UK was formed in 1995 by Graham Payne, John Holland and a small group of like-minded people, some of whom are still very actively involved in the charity. A number of RAPID UK's founder members had previously responded to earthquakes in Iran, Armenia, Georgia, The Philippines, Russia, Turkey and had undertaken a month long logistical project in Rwanda. It was as a result of the experiences they had gained during these deployments that they identified the need for in-country training and awareness and the requirement for search and rescue dogs to operate as part of rescue teams. In order to meet these needs they founded RAPID UK.
By dint of their own efforts; countless phone calls, letters and visits to government officials and frequently putting their hands into their own pockets to finance its activities, the original 8 members achieved RAPID UK’s first milestone in 1996 when it achieved charitable status.
Operationally the aim was simply to become recognised as a rescue, training and awareness team. Two early projects, one in Peru the other in Albania, acted as a catalyst to increase RAPID UK’s membership and to enhance its reputation and capability. Soon afterwards RAPID UK faced the test of assisting in the response to Hurricane Mitch in Honduras. This demanding deployment turned out to be just the start it needed to put RAPID UK on the map.
The first headquarters was at RAF Quedgeley Fire Station. In the early years membership increased at a remarkable rate. Training programmes were developed for new members and fund raising took off. The Charity’s registered office was initially set up in Devon giving it two centres of operation.
Since these early years, the Charity's membership has grown significantly and it has moved its operational headquarters and registered office to larger premises in Gloucester.
In recent years RAPID UK has worked closely with FOCUS Humanitarian Assistance,( www.akdn.org/focus) which is affiliated with the Aga Khan Development Network, a group of institutions working to improve opportunities and living conditions, for people of all faiths and origins, in specific regions of the developing world. Underlying the establishment of FOCUS by the Ismaili Muslim community is a history of successful initiatives to assist people struck by natural and man-made disasters in South and Central Asia, and Africa. RAPID UK and FOCUS Europe have carried out joint training projects in Portugal, India and Pakistan. FOCUS personnel formed part of the RAPID UK response to the 2009 Indonesian earthquake.
The Duke of Gloucester has been RAPID UK’s President for a number of years during which time he has been a staunch supporter and visited the charity on many occasions.
Click here to see a list of RAPID UK's National and International Disaster Deployments and here for a list of RAPID UK's Disaster Preparedness and Capacity Building Projects.