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Sam Fender has given the entirety of his twenty-five thousand pound Mercury Prize cash to the Music Venues Trust, which works to preserve the United Kingdom's independent concert spaces.

Fender was presented with the prize on 16 October as his latest record his work was named the outstanding release of the previous year.

The musician has decided to donate the funds to the MVT, in recognition of the vital role grassroots venues fulfilled in his beginning days.

"I wouldn't be doing my current career if it wasn't for all the gigs I performed around the region, and elsewhere, when I was starting out," remarked Fender. "These venues are iconic, but they are in difficulty."

Since the start of 2023, over 150 of these spaces have ceased operations – about one-sixth of the entire UK sector.

Over the past year, well-known musicians including Pulp, Coldplay, Katy Perry and Ed Sheeran have all supported the trust in its initiatives to help venues survive, by applying a small levy to their ticket prices, which goes to help smaller concert halls.

Sam Fender also participated, raising over £100k on his recent tour to support thirty-eight grassroots venues across Britain.

The donation assisted venues that were facing potential shutdown due to challenges stemming from water damage, blazes and bereavements, as well as licensing issues, conflicts and neighbor objections.

Some locations were granted monetary aid in modernizing infrastructure and technical equipment that directly benefitted artists and audiences.

"The notion that revenue from shows in major spaces backs the independent spots, where it begins for performers like me, is just common sense," the star has commented.

Fender is far from the only musician to contribute his honor winnings to charitable organizations.

Back when Pulp earned the prize in the mid-90s for their record their work, vocalist Jarvis Cocker declared that the group would contribute their prize money to the charity War Child.

In 2002, rapper and singer Ms Dynamite split her bounty among a few charities, such as the children's charity and a Sickle Cell charity.

"Additionally, I gave a £1,000 to my local community centre, to their gymnastics program, because I did gymnastics when I was growing up and they required better apparatus," she explained to a publication.

Previously, they contributed their prize money to the community center that supported their group, as well as other local music groups.

Also winners that year the group donated their award to a multiple sclerosis charity after a close contact was diagnosed the disease.

"Winning was ample," stated vocalist Small. "The cash was the cherry on top but we didn't need the cherry, because we had the cake. So our success touched somebody else's life."

Recently, the trust shared it had saved several small stages in the South East, by transferring them to local control.

The Joiners in Southampton and the other in that location were purchased under the community ownership program, which is backed by the arts council and enthusiasts who purchase "shares" in the venues.