One question we're asked a lot is "why should I join LOFT?". Recent events at Portsmouth and the ongoing situation at Coventry City show that it is as necessary as ever to have a strong, independent fans' voice at every football club to ensure that our combined voices are heard and taken into account.

The Olympic Stadium situation is another reason to maintain such a voice among Leyton Orient fans. Our stance on the Stadium has been constant and remains unchanged; while we support the club's efforts (both legal and otherwise) to ensure Leyton Orient Football Club isn't ignored and trampled over in the rush to give West Ham United the Stadium, we cannot support a move to the Stadium for Leyton Orient until supporters have been properly consulted and the implications (both financial and matchday experience) have been made clear.

The judicial review process means that there is little more the club can say at the moment, but once that process has been concluded, the next step has to be to consult the fans on whatever the plan is. In the meantime the club is right to do all it can to try and fill Brisbane Road every matchday, which in itself would be an ambitious step forward!

We can all play a part in contributing to the welfare of our club, both on the pitch and off. On the pitch the team always needs our vocal (and financial) support, while off the pitch there are many ways to show support. One of these is the ever-popular Supporters Club, a major part of Orient's social lifeblood, and we congratulate them for 35 years and counting (in their current form) of support to the club and purveyor of social activities for O's fans. LOFT continues to be a friend to the Supporters Club, which has been reciprocated with one of their committee (Tony Roome) agreeing to be one of LOFT's external directors.

Another way to show your support is to join LOFT, the independent Orient supporters' trust, part of the family of trusts under the umbrella of Supporters Direct. It costs as little as £1 to join, so there's no excuse not to, but we need more from those who can afford it if we're to continue supporting both the club and other Orient-related activities. Our sponsorship of Theo's Gang at the club has just entered its ninth year, while we are also financially supporting the newly relaunched LOFT FC, as well as Birkbeck Orient FC. We're always grateful to those who pay more than £1 when joining, or who join by standing order to pay a small amount each month - without those people, we wouldn't be able to offer £1 membership to all.

So join LOFT today, and become part of the independent voice of Orient supporters.