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Sam Fender has handed over the entirety of his £25k honor cash to the Music Venues Trust, which functions to save the United Kingdom's independent music venues.

Fender was presented with the prize on October 16 as his third album People Watching was chosen as the best record of the previous year.

The musician has chosen to donate the funds to the MVT, in recognition of the essential function grassroots venues played in his early career.

"I personally couldn't be pursuing what I am doing today if it weren't for all the gigs I did around the North East, and beyond, when I was just getting going," said the artist. "These locations are renowned, but they are facing challenges."

Since the start of 2023, more than 150 of these locations have ceased operations – approximately 16 percent of the whole industry in the UK.

Recently, well-known musicians such as the band Pulp, Coldplay, Katy Perry and Ed Sheeran have all supported the trust in its efforts to help venues survive, by including a minor surcharge to their ticket costs, which benefits smaller concert halls.

Fender also took part, raising more than £100,000 on his live tour to assist 38 local spots across England, Scotland, and Wales.

The donation assisted spaces that were facing imminent closure due to challenges arising from water damage, fires and bereavements, as well as permit problems, court cases and sound issues.

Additional spaces received funding support in upgrading amenities and sound and lighting systems that helped artists and concertgoers.

"The notion that funds from concerts in big venues supports the independent spots, where it begins for performers like me, is just logical," Sam Fender has stated.

He is among several artists to contribute his honor prize money to worthy causes.

In they won the trophy in 1996 for their release Different Class, vocalist Jarvis Cocker announced that the act would give their prize money to the organization the charity.

In 2002, rapper and singer she split her prize between several charities, like the children's charity and a Sickle Cell organization.

"And I gave a £1,000 to Highgate Newtown, to their classes, because I trained in gymnastics when I was a child and they required better apparatus," she explained to outlets.

Two years ago, the band contributed their winnings to the community center that nurtured their group, alongside other grassroots music organisations.

Also the 1994 recipients they donated their winnings to a charity for MS after a close contact was identified with the disease.

"Winning was quite enough," stated singer Small. "The prize was the extra but we didn't need the extra, because we had the main prize. So our success impacted somebody else's life."

Recently, the Music Venues Trust revealed it had saved several grassroots venues in the South East, by placing them under public stewardship.

One venue in that area and the other in the city were bought under the community ownership initiative, which is backed by the arts council and music fans who buy "ownership units" in the venues.