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The star has given the complete sum of his £25k honor winnings to the trust for venues, which operates to protect the United Kingdom's small concert spaces.

He was presented with the award on October 16 as his third album People Watching was chosen as the top album of the past year.

Fender has opted to donate the funds to the Music Venues Trust, in recognition of the vital role small stages had in his early career.

"I personally wouldn't be doing this success if it hadn't been for all the shows I played around the region, and further afield, when I was starting out," stated the artist. "These venues are legendary, but they are in difficulty."

Beginning in 2023, more than 150 of these locations have shut down – roughly 16% of the entire UK sector.

Over the past year, top acts like Pulp, Coldplay, Katy Perry and Ed Sheeran have all aided the Music Venues Trust in its attempts to support the industry, by including a small levy to their admission fees, which supports local stages.

Sam Fender also took part, raising over £100k on his 2024 arena tour to help 38 small stages across Britain.

The donation assisted locations that were facing imminent closure due to challenges stemming from floods, blazes and family tragedies, as well as licensing issues, court cases and noise complaints.

Additional spaces received funding support in improving infrastructure and gear that directly benefitted musicians and fans.

"The concept that money from performances in big venues helps the independent spots, where it begins for artists like me, is just common sense," the star has stated.

The musician is among several artists to contribute his Mercury Prize prize money to charitable organizations.

When they received the award in 1996 for their album Different Class, vocalist the singer stated that the act would contribute their winnings to the non-profit the charity.

That year, rapper and singer Ms Dynamite split her award between a few good causes, such as the children's charity and a Sickle Cell charity.

"Additionally, I gave a grand to my local community centre, to their gymnastics class, because I practiced gymnastics when I was growing up and they lacked updated gear," Ms Dynamite shared with the media.

Previously, they contributed their funds to the local youth club that nurtured their band, as well as other grassroots music organisations.

And 1994 winners they donated their award to a multiple sclerosis charity after a acquaintance was diagnosed the condition.

"The victory was sufficient," remarked singer Heather Small. "The money was the extra but we didn't need the cherry, because we had the honor. So our victory touched another person's life."

In the past week, the trust shared it had rescued two small stages in that region, by bringing them into public stewardship.

The Joiners in the city and the other in Bristol were acquired under the community ownership scheme, which is backed by the arts council and enthusiasts who purchase "shares" in the venues.