The artist has donated the entirety of his £25,000 award winnings to the MVT, which works to protect the United Kingdom's small concert spaces.
Fender was awarded the award on October 16 as his new release People Watching was chosen as the top album of the last 12 months.
The musician has chosen to hand the money over to the MVT, in appreciation of the vital role small stages played in his early career.
"As an artist would not have achieved this success if it weren't for all the performances I played around the area, and elsewhere, when I was just getting going," stated the artist. "These locations are iconic, but they are facing challenges."
From early 2023 onward, over 150 of these spaces have shut down – roughly 16% of the whole industry in the UK.
Over the past year, well-known musicians like Pulp, Coldplay, the singer Katy Perry and Sheeran have all supported the Music Venues Trust in its initiatives to keep the scene afloat, by adding a modest fee to their admission fees, which goes to help local stages.
Sam Fender also participated, raising more than £100,000 on his 2024 arena tour to help numerous grassroots venues across the UK.
The money supported locations that were dealing with imminent closure due to issues arising from flooding, blazes and bereavements, as well as licensing issues, court cases and sound issues.
Some locations obtained funding support in modernizing facilities and technical equipment that directly benefitted artists and audiences.
"The concept that funds from shows in large arenas backs the local stages, where it begins for artists like me, is just common sense," Sam Fender has stated.
Fender is among several artists to contribute his Mercury Prize prize money to worthy causes.
When the band received the trophy in the mid-90s for their record Different Class, vocalist Jarvis Cocker stated that the group would give their cash to the organization War Child.
During 2002, artist the artist shared her award across multiple charities, like the NSPCC and a Sickle Cell organization.
"I also gave a £1,000 to the center, to their gymnastics program, because I trained in gymnastics when I was a child and they required better apparatus," she shared with a publication.
In recent years, Ezra Collective donated their winnings to the community center that supported their act, in addition to other independent music bodies.
And winners that year they donated their winnings to a charity for MS after a acquaintance was identified with the illness.
"The victory was quite enough," remarked vocalist Heather Small. "The money was the extra but we didn't require the bonus, because we had the cake. So our winning affected somebody else's life."
Recently, the trust revealed it had rescued several local spots in the South East, by bringing them into local control.
One venue in Southampton and The Croft in that location were purchased under the community ownership program, which is supported by a national body and enthusiasts who purchase "shares" in the properties.
