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Sam Fender has given the complete sum of his £25k Mercury Prize winnings to the MVT, which operates to protect the United Kingdom's independent live music spots.

He was awarded the cheque on mid-October as his new release People Watching was named the top album of the past year.

He has opted to give the cash to the MVT, in acknowledgment of the essential function small stages played in his early career.

"As an artist wouldn't be doing this success if it weren't for all the gigs I performed around the region, and elsewhere, when I was starting out," stated Sam Fender. "These spaces are iconic, but they are in difficulty."

Since the start of 2023, more than 150 of these spaces have permanently closed – about one-sixth of the entire UK sector.

In the last year, well-known musicians like Pulp, the group Coldplay, Katy Perry and Ed Sheeran have all supported the trust in its initiatives to keep the scene afloat, by including a modest fee to their ticket costs, which goes to help independent venues.

Fender also participated, collecting in excess of £100,000 on his recent tour to assist thirty-eight local spots across the UK.

The donation helped spaces that were dealing with potential shutdown due to issues stemming from water damage, fires and bereavements, as well as licensing issues, court cases and neighbor objections.

Additional spaces received monetary aid in upgrading infrastructure and sound and lighting systems that directly benefitted musicians and fans.

"The notion that funds from concerts in large arenas supports the smaller venues, where it all starts for artists like me, is just logical," Fender has said.

Fender is far from the only musician to contribute his Mercury Prize funds to good deeds.

When Pulp earned the award in 1996 for their record Different Class, vocalist the singer declared that the act would give their prize money to the charity the charity.

In 2002, rapper and singer the artist divided her award between multiple organizations, including the NSPCC and a Sickle Cell charity.

"And I contributed a thousand pounds to Highgate Newtown, to their gymnastics program, because I practiced gymnastics when I was growing up and they needed updated gear," Ms Dynamite told the media.

Two years ago, the band gave their winnings to the local youth club that nurtured their act, in addition to other grassroots music organisations.

And the 1994 recipients M People donated their award to a multiple sclerosis charity after a friend was identified with the disease.

"Receiving the award was ample," stated singer the singer. "The prize was the bonus but we could do without the bonus, because we had the cake. So our victory affected another person's life."

In the past week, the Music Venues Trust revealed it had protected two grassroots venues in the South East, by bringing them into public stewardship.

One venue in the city and the second in that location were acquired under the public acquisition scheme, which is funded by the arts council and enthusiasts who acquire "shares" in the properties.