NRS-20110 | Stores and Materials Book [Illabo Shire Council]

Full description

This series is comprised of a single Stores and Materials Register for the Illabo Shire Council. The Illabo Shire Councils Stores and Materials Book contains the return of tools and plant held by the Shire from 1907. It contains the following information: nature of material, receipts – date received – from whom – quantity – rate, value or cost; Issues – date issued – to whom – to what work – Job. No. – quantity – rate, value or cost.

Regulations under the Local Government (Shires) Act, 1905 set down requirements for the management and recordkeeping of stores and materials. Stores and materials were defined as ‘such stores and materials as are required for use in the work supervised by the Engineer, and also such articles of what are called “plant” – such as picks, shovels, barrows and scaffolding.” (1) [The regulations defined plant as ‘alliances of a comparatively permanent nature’ such as engines, ferries, pumps (2) and these are excluded from regulations governing stores and materials.]

The regulations specified that within a month of the establishment of a Shire the Engineer submit to the Clerk an inventory of the stores and materials taken over from the Public Works Department, indicating their condition and including an estimate of their value. The statement was required to distinguish between the items in use and those retained in storage. This inventory was to be pasted into a guard book to be labelled ‘Stores and Materials’ and the value entered into the ledger as a ‘stores and materials account’ under the “Government Grants Account’. (3)

The Engineer was required to keep a record of all materials purchased indicating the purposes for which the items were required and these were debited to the stores and materials account. (4)

Endnotes:
1. The Local Government (Shires) Act, 1905. Regulations [NSW Government Gazette 28 November 1906 p. 6446 ff. No 138.
2. ibid.
3. ibid.
4. ibid.