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Sam Fender has handed over the complete sum of his £25,000 award winnings to the Music Venues Trust, which functions to save the UK's grassroots live music spots.

The star was presented with the prize on October 16 as his third album the album was declared the top album of the last 12 months.

The musician has chosen to hand the money over to the MVT, in appreciation of the crucial part local spots had in his beginning days.

"I personally wouldn't be doing what I am doing today if it wasn't for all the performances I performed around the area, and elsewhere, when I was just getting going," said the artist. "These venues are iconic, but they are struggling."

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

Over the past year, major artists such as Pulp, the group Coldplay, the singer Katy Perry and Ed Sheeran have all aided the Music Venues Trust in its initiatives to keep the scene afloat, by applying a minor surcharge to their admission fees, which benefits smaller concert halls.

Sam Fender also joined in, generating more than £100,000 on his live tour to help 38 grassroots venues across the UK.

These funds assisted venues that were facing possible closure due to issues arising from floods, blazes and family tragedies, as well as permit problems, court cases and sound issues.

Some locations were granted funding support in improving facilities and technical equipment that directly benefitted performers and fans.

"The concept that money from concerts in big venues helps the local stages, where it begins for musicians like me, is just logical," the star has stated.

He is not the first artist to contribute his honor prize money to good deeds.

When the band earned the prize in 1996 for their album the album, lead singer Jarvis Cocker declared that the group would contribute their cash to the organization the charity.

During 2002, artist Ms Dynamite shared her bounty between several charities, such as the NSPCC and a Sickle Cell organization.

"Additionally, I contributed a grand to Highgate Newtown, to their classes, because I did gymnastics when I was a child and they lacked updated gear," Ms Dynamite shared with outlets.

Previously, Ezra Collective contributed their funds to the youth organization that supported their band, as well as other local music groups.

Also winners that year the group gave their winnings to a MS organization after a close contact was identified with the disease.

"Receiving the award was quite enough," said singer the singer. "The cash was the bonus but we could do without the bonus, because we had the honor. So our success touched another person's life."

Last week, the trust shared it had protected several small stages in that region, by placing them under local control.

The Joiners in that area and the other in that location were bought under the public acquisition scheme, which is funded by a national body and supporters who buy "ownership units" in the venues.