The artist has handed over the entirety of his twenty-five thousand pound award prize money to the Music Venues Trust, which works to save the United Kingdom's grassroots concert spaces.
He was presented with the prize on 16 October as his third album his work was named the outstanding release of the previous year.
Fender has decided to give the cash to the trust, in appreciation of the crucial part small stages fulfilled in his beginning days.
"As an artist couldn't be pursuing what I am doing today if it weren't for all the performances I played around the area, and elsewhere, when I was beginning," said Sam Fender. "These locations are iconic, but they are in difficulty."
From early 2023 onward, over 150 of these venues have permanently closed – roughly one-sixth of the whole industry in the UK.
Over the past year, major artists like Pulp, the group Coldplay, Katy Perry and Ed Sheeran have all backed the MVT in its efforts to help venues survive, by applying a modest fee to their admission fees, which supports local stages.
Sam Fender also participated, raising over £100k on his recent tour to assist thirty-eight local spots across the UK.
The money assisted spaces that were dealing with potential shutdown due to issues arising from floods, fire incidents and bereavements, as well as licensing issues, conflicts and neighbor objections.
Some locations received monetary aid in upgrading facilities and gear that helped performers and concertgoers.
"The notion that revenue from concerts in big venues supports the smaller venues, where it all starts for performers like me, is just common sense," the star has commented.
Fender is not the first artist to contribute his Mercury Prize prize money to good deeds.
When Pulp won the prize in 1996 for their record the album, frontman Cocker stated that the band would give their cash to the non-profit the charity.
That year, artist Ms Dynamite shared her award across several charities, such as the NSPCC and a Sickle Cell organization.
"And I gave a grand to the center, to their classes, because I practiced gymnastics when I was younger and they lacked updated gear," the artist shared with a publication.
Two years ago, they donated their prize money to the community center that developed their group, in addition to other grassroots music organisations.
Also 1994 winners they contributed their prize to a multiple sclerosis charity after a acquaintance was diagnosed the disease.
"Winning was quite enough," remarked singer Heather Small. "The cash was the cherry on top but we didn't need the extra, because we had the cake. So our victory impacted somebody else's life."
In the past week, the Music Venues Trust announced it had protected a couple of grassroots venues in the South East, by transferring them to public stewardship.
The first in Southampton and the second in that location were bought under the Own Our Venues scheme, which is funded by Arts Council England and music fans who buy "shares" in the venues.
