The artist has handed over the complete sum of his twenty-five thousand pound Mercury Prize winnings to the trust for venues, which works to preserve the UK's small music venues.
Fender was given the prize on October 16 as his new release People Watching was named the outstanding release of the previous year.
He has chosen to donate the funds to the Music Venues Trust, in acknowledgment of the crucial part small stages fulfilled in his initial steps.
"As an artist couldn't be pursuing my current career if it weren't for all the shows I played around the area, and beyond, when I was starting out," stated the artist. "These venues are legendary, but they are in difficulty."
Beginning in 2023, at least 150 of these venues have shut down – roughly 16% of the entire UK sector.
Recently, well-known musicians such as the band Pulp, Coldplay, the singer Katy Perry and Sheeran have all aided the trust in its initiatives to keep the scene afloat, by adding a modest fee to their admission fees, which supports local stages.
He also joined in, generating over £100k on his recent tour to support numerous small stages across Britain.
These funds assisted spaces that were dealing with possible closure due to challenges stemming from water damage, blazes and personal losses, as well as regulatory hurdles, legal disputes and neighbor objections.
Some locations obtained funding support in improving facilities and technical equipment that positively impacted musicians and concertgoers.
"The idea that revenue from performances in large arenas helps the independent spots, where it kicks off for artists like me, is just common sense," Fender has commented.
Fender is far from the only musician to contribute his Mercury Prize winnings to worthy causes.
In the band received the prize in 1996 for their release Different Class, lead singer Cocker announced that the group would donate their prize money to the charity the charity.
In 2002, musician Ms Dynamite divided her prize among several organizations, like the NSPCC and a Sickle Cell organization.
"And I contributed a grand to my local community centre, to their gymnastics program, because I did gymnastics when I was younger and they needed updated gear," Ms Dynamite shared with the media.
In recent years, the band donated their funds to the community center that supported their band, in addition to other independent music bodies.
Also 1994 winners they contributed their winnings to a charity for MS after a friend was diagnosed the illness.
"Receiving the award was ample," remarked vocalist Small. "The prize was the cherry on top but we could do without the extra, because we had the cake. So our success impacted another person's life."
Last week, the Music Venues Trust revealed it had rescued two grassroots venues in the South East, by bringing them into community ownership.
One venue in the city and the second in Bristol were bought under the public acquisition program, which is backed by Arts Council England and supporters who acquire "ownership units" in the properties.
