The star has handed over the entirety of his twenty-five thousand pound honor cash to the Music Venues Trust, which functions to preserve the United Kingdom's small concert spaces.
The star was given the cheque on mid-October as his latest record People Watching was chosen as the best record of the previous year.
Fender has opted to donate the funds to the Music Venues Trust, in appreciation of the essential function small stages had in his beginning days.
"I wouldn't be doing what I am doing today if it weren't for all the gigs I performed around the area, and elsewhere, when I was just getting going," stated Fender. "These venues are legendary, but they are facing challenges."
From early 2023 onward, over 150 of these spaces have shut down – approximately 16% of the entire UK sector.
Over the past year, top acts such as Pulp, Coldplay, Katy Perry and Ed Sheeran have all supported the Music Venues Trust in its initiatives to support the industry, by applying a minor surcharge to their admission fees, which supports independent venues.
Fender also participated, raising over £100k on his 2024 arena tour to support 38 grassroots venues across the UK.
The donation supported spaces that were facing potential shutdown due to challenges arising from flooding, blazes and family tragedies, as well as permit problems, legal disputes and neighbor objections.
Some locations obtained funding support in modernizing facilities and sound and lighting systems that helped performers and audiences.
"The idea that revenue from concerts in large arenas backs the smaller venues, where it all starts for artists like me, is just logical," Fender has commented.
He is not the first artist to contribute his Mercury Prize winnings to good deeds.
Back when Pulp won the prize in the year 1996 for their release Different Class, lead singer the singer declared that the band would give their winnings to the organization War Child.
That year, artist Ms Dynamite split her bounty between several good causes, including the NSPCC and a Sickle Cell organization.
"I also gave a grand to the center, to their gymnastics class, because I trained in gymnastics when I was growing up and they required new equipment," she shared with outlets.
Previously, they donated their funds to the local youth club that supported their group, as well as other independent music bodies.
Additionally winners that year they gave their winnings to a MS organization after a close contact was identified with the illness.
"Receiving the award was ample," stated singer the singer. "The money was the bonus but we could do without the extra, because we had the honor. So our winning impacted another person's life."
Last week, the trust revealed it had saved several small stages in the South East, by placing them under public stewardship.
One venue in Southampton and the other in the city were bought under the public acquisition scheme, which is funded by a national body and music fans who buy "stakes" in the properties.
