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Sam Fender has given the entirety of his £25,000 Mercury Prize cash to the Music Venues Trust, which functions to preserve the UK's grassroots live music spots.

He was given the cheque on 16 October as his third album People Watching was declared the outstanding release of the previous year.

Fender has chosen to give the cash to the MVT, in recognition of the vital role grassroots venues had in his early career.

"I personally wouldn't be doing my current career if it weren't for all the shows I played around the region, and elsewhere, when I was just getting going," remarked the artist. "These locations are iconic, but they are in difficulty."

Beginning in 2023, more than 150 of these venues have shut down – roughly one-sixth of the entire UK sector.

Recently, major artists including the band Pulp, the group Coldplay, Katy Perry and Sheeran have all supported the trust in its attempts to support the industry, by adding a minor surcharge to their ticket costs, which benefits local stages.

Sam Fender also participated, collecting more than £100,000 on his recent tour to support 38 local spots across England, Scotland, and Wales.

These funds helped locations that were dealing with potential shutdown due to issues stemming from floods, fires and personal losses, as well as licensing issues, court cases and noise complaints.

Other venues were granted monetary aid in upgrading facilities and gear that directly benefitted musicians and fans.

"The idea that revenue from performances in big venues helps the independent spots, where it all starts for musicians like me, is just common sense," the star has stated.

The musician is not the first artist to give his honor winnings to charitable organizations.

Back when they received the prize in 1996 for their release their work, frontman Cocker declared that the act would contribute their winnings to the non-profit War Child.

That year, musician Ms Dynamite divided her award across multiple good causes, like the children's charity and a Sickle Cell charity.

"Additionally, I gave a grand to the center, to their gymnastics class, because I trained in gymnastics when I was a child and they needed updated gear," the artist explained to outlets.

Two years ago, they gave their prize money to the local youth club that supported their act, in addition to other grassroots music organisations.

Additionally 1994 winners M People gave their prize to a multiple sclerosis charity after a friend was diagnosed the disease.

"The victory was ample," said vocalist Small. "The prize was the extra but we didn't need the extra, because we had the main prize. So our winning affected another person's life."

Recently, the MVT announced it had protected two grassroots venues in that region, by placing them under local control.

The first in that area and the second in Bristol were bought under the community ownership initiative, which is backed by the arts council and music fans who purchase "stakes" in the venues.