The artist has given the entirety of his £25k award prize money to the Music Venues Trust, which functions to protect the United Kingdom's independent concert spaces.
Fender was awarded the prize on mid-October as his latest record People Watching was declared the top album of the last 12 months.
He has chosen to hand the money over to the trust, in acknowledgment of the essential function small stages played in his beginning days.
"I personally wouldn't be doing what I am doing today if it weren't for all the shows I played around the North East, and further afield, when I was starting out," remarked Fender. "These spaces are renowned, but they are struggling."
From early 2023 onward, at least 150 of these spaces have ceased operations – approximately 16% of the whole industry in the UK.
In the last year, top acts including the band Pulp, Coldplay, the singer Katy Perry and Sheeran have all aided the MVT in its attempts to support the industry, by applying a minor surcharge to their admission fees, which benefits independent venues.
Fender also joined in, collecting in excess of £100,000 on his live tour to assist thirty-eight local spots across Britain.
The donation supported spaces that were dealing with possible closure due to challenges arising from water damage, blazes and bereavements, as well as regulatory hurdles, conflicts and neighbor objections.
Other venues obtained financial assistance in improving amenities and technical equipment that directly benefitted artists and fans.
"The concept that funds from concerts in large arenas backs the local stages, where it all starts for artists like me, is just sensible," Sam Fender has stated.
The musician is far from the only musician to contribute his Mercury Prize funds to charitable organizations.
Back when they won the award in the year 1996 for their record their work, lead singer Jarvis Cocker announced that the act would give their cash to the charity War Child.
That year, rapper and singer Ms Dynamite divided her award between multiple charities, like the NSPCC and a charity for Sickle Cell.
"I also contributed a thousand pounds to my local community centre, to their gymnastics program, because I trained in gymnastics when I was a child and they needed new equipment," the artist told outlets.
Previously, the band donated their prize money to the youth organization that nurtured their act, alongside other grassroots music organisations.
Additionally winners that year they contributed their prize to a charity for MS after a acquaintance was found to have the disease.
"Receiving the award was ample," said artist Small. "The prize was the bonus but we didn't need the bonus, because we had the cake. So our success affected somebody else's life."
Last week, the MVT shared it had rescued a couple of small stages in the South East, by bringing them into community ownership.
The first in the city and the other in the city were bought under the public acquisition initiative, which is funded by the arts council and enthusiasts who purchase "stakes" in the buildings.
