In 2009, Rams supporters are celebrating their “Year of the Fans”, declared as such by Derby County to mark the club’s 125th anniversary. This programme began with the proud unveiling of Steve Bloomer’s bust at Pride Park Stadium.

Next week, RamsTrust members will attend Supporters Direct annual conference in Birmingham, meeting many other football fans from throughout the UK to promote and progress supporters’ concerns and campaigns.

Supporters Direct is an independent, mutual and member-owned organisation which enjoys cross-party political support. It promotes responsible and democratic representation of supporters within their clubs and assists with community involvement. Over 150 supporters’ trusts now thrive in the UK, guided by these principles and objectives, variously affiliated to Premier League, Championship and Conference teams and some Rugby League and Rugby Union clubs.

Nowadays, broader social change develops from the actions of committed and articulate interest groups that identify needs, declare objectives and thereby mobilise public opinion. Within this context, individual football clubs and the sport in general have benefited in recent years from the work of its active supporters.

On a local level, RamsTrust proposed the Bloomer memorial, now finally realised after several years of effort by fans to help fund the monument. Since January 2008, Derby supporters have lobbied for a Clough & Taylor statue at the stadium that will provide permanent recognition of the dynamic duo’s contribution to the club.

On a more fundamental level, the independent supporters’ movement is providing a platform for supporters to act on concerns about ownership issues at their clubs. Leeds United’s trust is one amongst several that are involved in trying to unravel the riddle of their club’s ownership amid doubts over its long-term prospects.

The local Liberal Democrat MP, Phil Willis concurs, stating that “[The fans] have a right to know who owns their club”. Furthermore, “The Football League must revisit this case to ensure that its rules, i.e., those owners must be passed as fit and proper, have been met."

That scenario is familiar to Derby County fans, particularly those that demanded honesty and transparency from the Sleightholme board and undertook the lengthy task of exposure; Trust opposition, a fans’ petition to the Co-op Bank and escalating protests laid the foundation for the regime’s removal and the subsequent criminal convictions of three club directors.

Supporters at Portsmouth and Notts County also face trying times, and Newcastle United fans are presently hoping to secure funds to buy a significant shareholding in the club to improve fans’ influence in its future direction.

A RamsTrust member serves on the Supporters Direct board, and RamsTrust has submitted a proposal that its Board membership is increased this year from nine to twelve, thereby providing greater representation for its member trusts.

Supporters’ views - about club ownership, ticket prices, kick-off times, disabled fans’ access, policing, safe standing and many other issues – now gain much weight throughout EVERY year via Supporters Direct and its active membership. More information can be found about Supporters Direct and the upcoming conference at: http://www.supporters-direct.org.

The Trader column is for individual members of RamsTrust to put their point of view across in the media. Although the views will not contravene the principles of the trust, the views expressed are entirely personal to the author and do not necessarily represent RamsTrust policy.