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Sam Fender has donated the complete sum of his twenty-five thousand pound Mercury Prize prize money to the MVT, which operates to save the UK's independent music venues.

The star was awarded the cheque on October 16 as his latest record his work was declared the outstanding release of the previous year.

He has chosen to donate the funds to the trust, in acknowledgment of the vital role grassroots venues had in his early career.

"I personally couldn't be pursuing my current career if it hadn't been for all the shows I did around the area, and beyond, when I was starting out," stated the artist. "These locations are legendary, but they are facing challenges."

Since the start of 2023, at least 150 of these locations have shut down – approximately 16% of the entire UK sector.

Over the past year, well-known musicians such as Pulp, Coldplay, the singer Katy Perry and Ed Sheeran have all backed the trust in its initiatives to support the industry, by applying a modest fee to their admission fees, which supports local stages.

Sam Fender also took part, raising more than £100,000 on his 2024 arena tour to support 38 local spots across the UK.

The money supported venues that were dealing with imminent closure due to challenges arising from flooding, blazes and personal losses, as well as regulatory hurdles, court cases and sound issues.

Some locations received funding support in modernizing amenities and sound and lighting systems that helped musicians and fans.

"The notion that funds from shows in major spaces supports the local stages, where it begins for musicians like me, is just common sense," the star has commented.

He is not the first artist to donate his Mercury Prize funds to worthy causes.

Back when they won the trophy in the year 1996 for their record their work, frontman the singer stated that the group would give their cash to the charity War Child.

In 2002, musician the artist split her prize among several charities, such as the children's charity and a Sickle Cell charity.

"Additionally, I contributed a £1,000 to the center, to their gymnastics program, because I did gymnastics when I was growing up and they lacked better apparatus," the artist told the media.

Two years ago, the band gave their funds to the youth organization that nurtured their band, in addition to other independent music bodies.

And winners that year M People donated their winnings to a MS organization after a acquaintance was identified with the illness.

"Winning was sufficient," said artist the singer. "The cash was the cherry on top but we didn't need the cherry, because we had the main prize. So our winning impacted the lives of others."

In the past week, the Music Venues Trust revealed it had protected a couple of grassroots venues in south-east England, by placing them under public stewardship.

One venue in the city and the second in the city were purchased under the community ownership initiative, which is funded by Arts Council England and supporters who buy "stakes" in the properties.