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Sam Fender has given the complete sum of his twenty-five thousand pound Mercury Prize prize money to the Music Venues Trust, which functions to save the Britain's independent live music spots.

The star was given the prize on 16 October as his latest record his work was named the top album of the previous year.

Fender has opted to give the cash to the trust, in acknowledgment of the crucial part small stages had in his beginning days.

"I personally wouldn't be doing this success if it hadn't been for all the performances I did around the North East, and elsewhere, when I was just getting going," said Fender. "These locations are iconic, but they are in difficulty."

From early 2023 onward, at least 150 of these spaces have permanently closed – about 16 percent of the total UK scene.

Recently, top acts like the band Pulp, the group Coldplay, Katy Perry and Ed Sheeran have all aided the Music Venues Trust in its attempts to keep the scene afloat, by applying a small levy to their admission fees, which supports smaller concert halls.

Fender also took part, raising more than £100,000 on his recent tour to help thirty-eight grassroots venues across the UK.

The donation helped venues that were facing imminent closure due to challenges stemming from floods, fires and bereavements, as well as permit problems, conflicts and neighbor objections.

Some locations were granted financial assistance in improving infrastructure and gear that helped musicians and concertgoers.

"The idea that money from concerts in big venues helps the smaller venues, where it all starts for artists like me, is just sensible," Fender has said.

He is far from the only musician to donate his honor winnings to charitable organizations.

Back when they won the award in 1996 for their record the album, frontman Jarvis Cocker announced that the act would give their cash to the charity War Child.

In 2002, artist Ms Dynamite shared her prize across a few organizations, like the NSPCC and a charity for Sickle Cell.

"I also donated a thousand pounds to the center, to their gymnastics class, because I trained in gymnastics when I was growing up and they lacked better apparatus," the artist shared with a publication.

In recent years, the band contributed their prize money to the youth organization that supported their group, in addition to other local music groups.

Additionally 1994 winners they contributed their award to a MS organization after a acquaintance was identified with the disease.

"Receiving the award was sufficient," said artist Heather Small. "The prize was the bonus but we could do without the bonus, because we had the honor. So our victory affected somebody else's life."

Last week, the trust shared it had saved two grassroots venues in the South East, by transferring them to public stewardship.

The Joiners in Southampton and the other in Bristol were purchased under the public acquisition program, which is backed by Arts Council England and supporters who buy "shares" in the venues.