The artist has donated the complete sum of his £25,000 award prize money to the Music Venues Trust, which operates to protect the United Kingdom's grassroots live music spots.
Fender was awarded the prize on mid-October as his latest record People Watching was named the outstanding release of the last 12 months.
The musician has chosen to donate the funds to the MVT, in recognition of the essential function small stages fulfilled in his initial steps.
"I personally would not have achieved what I am doing today if it wasn't for all the performances I played around the area, and beyond, when I was starting out," said the artist. "These locations are iconic, but they are struggling."
Since the start of 2023, over 150 of these spaces have ceased operations – roughly one-sixth of the whole industry in the UK.
Recently, major artists including the band Pulp, the group Coldplay, Katy Perry and Ed Sheeran have all aided the trust in its efforts to keep the scene afloat, by including a modest fee to their ticket prices, which supports smaller concert halls.
He also took part, generating over £100k on his 2024 arena tour to help 38 grassroots venues across England, Scotland, and Wales.
The donation helped locations that were facing possible closure due to challenges stemming from flooding, fire incidents and personal losses, as well as licensing issues, conflicts and sound issues.
Additional spaces obtained financial assistance in improving amenities and technical equipment that directly benefitted musicians and audiences.
"The notion that money from shows in large arenas backs the smaller venues, where it kicks off for performers like me, is just common sense," Fender has commented.
The musician is far from the only musician to contribute his Mercury Prize winnings to charitable organizations.
Back when the band received the prize in 1996 for their record Different Class, frontman Cocker declared that the group would give their winnings to the organization War Child.
During 2002, artist Ms Dynamite shared her bounty across a few organizations, like the NSPCC and a Sickle Cell charity.
"I also donated a thousand pounds to Highgate Newtown, to their classes, because I did gymnastics when I was a child and they required new equipment," the artist explained to outlets.
Previously, the band donated their winnings to the youth organization that supported their group, as well as other independent music bodies.
Also winners that year M People gave their award to a MS organization after a acquaintance was found to have the condition.
"Winning was quite enough," remarked singer Small. "The cash was the bonus but we could do without the cherry, because we had the main prize. So our winning impacted the lives of others."
Recently, the Music Venues Trust revealed it had saved several local spots in south-east England, by transferring them to public stewardship.
The Joiners in Southampton and the second in that location were purchased under the community ownership initiative, which is funded by a national body and enthusiasts who acquire "stakes" in the properties.
