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The star has given the full amount of his £25,000 honor winnings to the trust for venues, which works to save the Britain's grassroots music venues.

Fender was given the prize on October 16 as his new release his work was chosen as the best record of the past year.

Fender has opted to hand the money over to the Music Venues Trust, in acknowledgment of the essential function small stages fulfilled in his beginning days.

"I couldn't be pursuing my current career if it hadn't been for all the gigs I played around the region, and further afield, when I was beginning," stated Fender. "These spaces are legendary, but they are struggling."

From early 2023 onward, more than 150 of these locations have ceased operations – about one-sixth of the whole industry in the UK.

In the last year, major artists including Pulp, the group Coldplay, Katy Perry and Sheeran have all backed the Music Venues Trust in its efforts to support the industry, by adding a minor surcharge to their ticket prices, which goes to help smaller concert halls.

Sam Fender also participated, generating more than £100,000 on his 2024 arena tour to help thirty-eight small stages across Britain.

The donation supported spaces that were confronting possible closure due to issues arising from water damage, blazes and bereavements, as well as permit problems, court cases and sound issues.

Some locations received monetary aid in modernizing amenities and technical equipment that directly benefitted artists and concertgoers.

"The notion that money from performances in large arenas helps the independent spots, where it all starts for artists like me, is just logical," Fender has said.

He is not the first artist to donate his award funds to charitable organizations.

Back when Pulp received the prize in the year 1996 for their record the album, vocalist Jarvis Cocker declared that the act would donate their prize money to the charity War Child.

In 2002, rapper and singer Ms Dynamite split her award across a few organizations, including the children's charity and a Sickle Cell charity.

"Additionally, I contributed a £1,000 to the center, to their gymnastics class, because I trained in gymnastics when I was younger and they needed new equipment," she shared with a publication.

In recent years, they donated their funds to the local youth club that supported their group, as well as other grassroots music organisations.

Also winners that year the group gave their award to a multiple sclerosis charity after a acquaintance was identified with the disease.

"The victory was quite enough," said vocalist Heather Small. "The money was the bonus but we could do without the bonus, because we had the main prize. So our victory touched another person's life."

Last week, the Music Venues Trust announced it had rescued a couple of grassroots venues in south-east England, by placing them under community ownership.

One venue in Southampton and the second in the city were acquired under the public acquisition scheme, which is backed by a national body and enthusiasts who acquire "stakes" in the venues.