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The star has handed over the entirety of his £25k award prize money to the MVT, which operates to preserve the United Kingdom's small concert spaces.

Fender was given the prize on mid-October as his new release People Watching was named the best record of the past year.

The musician has decided to hand the money over to the trust, in appreciation of the crucial part local spots had in his initial steps.

"I would not have achieved this success if it wasn't for all the shows I did around the region, and beyond, when I was beginning," remarked the artist. "These spaces are legendary, but they are in difficulty."

From early 2023 onward, more than 150 of these venues have shut down – roughly 16 percent of the total UK scene.

Recently, top acts such as Pulp, the group Coldplay, Katy Perry and Ed Sheeran have all backed the MVT in its initiatives to keep the scene afloat, by adding a modest fee to their ticket prices, which goes to help local stages.

He also joined in, generating over £100k on his 2024 arena tour to support numerous small stages across the UK.

The money helped venues that were facing imminent closure due to issues caused by floods, blazes and family tragedies, as well as regulatory hurdles, conflicts and sound issues.

Additional spaces obtained financial assistance in improving amenities and technical equipment that directly benefitted musicians and audiences.

"The notion that revenue from shows in major spaces backs the local stages, where it kicks off for artists like me, is just logical," the star has said.

Fender is among several artists to give his award prize money to worthy causes.

When Pulp received the trophy in 1996 for their record their work, lead singer Jarvis Cocker announced that the group would contribute their prize money to the charity the charity.

In 2002, rapper and singer she split her prize among a few good causes, including the children's charity and a Sickle Cell charity.

"And I contributed a thousand pounds to my local community centre, to their classes, because I did gymnastics when I was a child and they lacked better apparatus," she shared with a publication.

Two years ago, Ezra Collective donated their funds to the youth organization that nurtured their act, in addition to other grassroots music organisations.

Also 1994 winners the group contributed their winnings to a MS organization after a close contact was identified with the illness.

"Winning was quite enough," stated vocalist the singer. "The cash was the extra but we didn't require the extra, because we had the honor. So our success touched another person's life."

Recently, the trust shared it had saved two grassroots venues in south-east England, by bringing them into community ownership.

One venue in that area and the second in Bristol were acquired under the community ownership program, which is backed by a national body and enthusiasts who purchase "stakes" in the venues.