The artist has donated the entirety of his £25,000 award prize money to the Music Venues Trust, which functions to preserve the United Kingdom's grassroots live music spots.
Fender was presented with the award on 16 October as his latest record People Watching was declared the outstanding release of the past year.
He has decided to donate the funds to the trust, in acknowledgment of the vital role grassroots venues had in his initial steps.
"I personally would not have achieved this success if it weren't for all the performances I played around the area, and beyond, when I was starting out," remarked Fender. "These spaces are legendary, but they are facing challenges."
Beginning in 2023, more than 150 of these spaces have shut down – about one-sixth of the total UK scene.
Over the past year, well-known musicians including Pulp, the group Coldplay, the singer Katy Perry and Ed Sheeran have all supported the MVT in its initiatives to help venues survive, by including a small levy to their ticket prices, which goes to help local stages.
He also participated, collecting more than £100,000 on his live tour to support numerous grassroots venues across the UK.
The donation helped spaces that were dealing with potential shutdown due to difficulties arising from floods, blazes and personal losses, as well as permit problems, legal disputes and noise complaints.
Some locations obtained funding support in upgrading amenities and sound and lighting systems that directly benefitted musicians and audiences.
"The idea that funds from performances in big venues backs the local stages, where it kicks off for performers like me, is just sensible," Fender has said.
The musician is not the first artist to give his Mercury Prize funds to charitable organizations.
Back when Pulp won the prize in the year 1996 for their record Different Class, vocalist Jarvis Cocker announced that the act would donate their winnings to the non-profit the charity.
During 2002, rapper and singer the artist split her bounty across several organizations, such as the NSPCC and a Sickle Cell charity.
"Additionally, I contributed a grand to my local community centre, to their classes, because I trained in gymnastics when I was a child and they required updated gear," she shared with a publication.
Previously, Ezra Collective donated their funds to the youth organization that nurtured their band, alongside other grassroots music organisations.
Also 1994 winners the group donated their award to a MS organization after a close contact was diagnosed the disease.
"Winning was quite enough," remarked artist Heather Small. "The prize was the bonus but we didn't need the bonus, because we had the cake. So our victory touched the lives of others."
Recently, the trust announced it had rescued a couple of small stages in the South East, by transferring them to public stewardship.
The Joiners in that area and the second in the city were purchased under the community ownership initiative, which is supported by a national body and enthusiasts who buy "ownership units" in the properties.
