Stores assistant duties centre on running an internal store that supplies a business with the materials, spares, consumables and equipment it needs to operate. Unlike a warehouse serving external customers, a stores function serves the organisation itself: production lines, maintenance teams, workshops and site staff. This page sets out what a stores assistant does day to day, how the role differs from warehouse stock positions, and how to write these duties on a CV or in a job description.
What Does a Stores Assistant Do?
A stores assistant issues items to internal users against requisitions, receives and stores incoming supplies, keeps the stores organised and accessible, monitors reorder levels, and maintains the records that show what was issued to whom. The role usually operates from a stores counter or issue point, which makes it partly a customer service position as well as a stock one.
Typical stores environments include manufacturing sites, mines, municipalities, hospitals, engineering workshops and construction operations. The stock held is usually spares, tools, consumables, personal protective equipment, chemicals and maintenance materials rather than saleable product.
How This Differs From Warehouse Stock Roles
The important distinction is who the customer is. A warehouse stock clerk handles product destined for external customers, and accuracy failures show up as delivery errors. A stores assistant supplies internal teams, and accuracy failures show up as production downtime or a maintenance job that cannot proceed because a part was not available. That difference shapes the priorities: a stores assistant is judged heavily on availability of critical items and on controlling issues so stock is not simply taken. For warehouse-side stock work see stock controller duties, and for the wider cluster see General Worker Logistics Duties.
Key Stores Assistant Duties and Responsibilities
- Issuing materials, spares, tools and consumables against approved requisitions.
- Recording every issue against the correct cost centre, job number or work order.
- Receiving incoming supplies and checking them against purchase orders.
- Storing items in designated, labelled locations so they can be found quickly.
- Monitoring stock levels against minimum and reorder points.
- Raising requisitions or purchase requests for replenishment.
- Maintaining the stores register and stock records on the system.
- Conducting cycle counts and participating in stock takes.
- Controlling issue of personal protective equipment and recording allocations.
- Managing tool issue and return, including tracking outstanding items.
- Identifying and reporting slow-moving, obsolete or expired stock.
- Handling and storing hazardous or controlled items according to requirements.
- Keeping the stores area clean, safe, secure and well organised.
- Liaising with maintenance, production and purchasing on availability and lead times.
- Supporting audits with records and count support.
The accountability that matters most is control combined with availability. A stores assistant is expected to refuse an unauthorised issue and to record every movement, while also making sure that a critical spare is on the shelf when the line stops. Employers value people who can hold both, because being helpful without control creates shrinkage, and control without helpfulness creates downtime.
Daily Stores Assistant Duties
- Opening the stores and preparing the issue point for the shift.
- Issuing items against requisitions and recording each against its job or cost centre.
- Receiving and checking incoming deliveries from suppliers.
- Putting new stock away into labelled locations.
- Reviewing reorder reports and raising replenishment requests.
- Following up outstanding tool returns.
- Conducting the day’s assigned cycle counts.
- Reporting stock-outs of critical items to the supervisor.
- Maintaining stores housekeeping and security at shift end.
Stores Assistant Skills and Requirements
- Matric or equivalent, with stores or stock control training an advantage.
- Experience in a stores, warehouse or inventory environment.
- Working knowledge of a stock or ERP system.
- Accurate record keeping and comfort with requisition documentation.
- Basic numeracy for counting, reorder levels and unit conversions.
- Ability to identify parts, spares and consumables from codes or descriptions.
- Understanding of stock control principles and reorder point logic.
- Firmness in enforcing requisition and authorisation requirements.
- Clear communication with maintenance, production and purchasing colleagues.
- Physical capability for lifting, storing and handling stores items.
- Awareness of safe handling and storage for hazardous materials.
- Integrity and reliability, given custody of valuable tools and spares.
Stores Assistant Duties for a CV
Stores CV bullets are strongest when they show the size of the stockholding, the internal customers served and evidence of control or availability improvements.
- Issued spares, consumables and personal protective equipment to production and maintenance teams across a manufacturing site.
- Recorded all issues against job numbers and cost centres for accurate departmental recharging.
- Maintained stock records for approximately two thousand stores line items.
- Monitored reorder levels and raised replenishment requests, reducing critical stock-outs.
- Managed tool issue and return, tracking outstanding items to recovery.
- Conducted monthly cycle counts and supported the annual stock take.
- Maintained safe storage and records for hazardous materials held in stores.
Stores Assistant Job Description Template
When advertising, describe the site and who the stores serves, because supplying a maintenance workshop is a different job to supplying a production line or a hospital ward. State the number of line items held and the system used.
Be clear about the authority attached to the role: whether the assistant can refuse an unauthorised requisition, whether they raise purchase requests directly, and what their reorder responsibilities are. Specify whether hazardous materials or controlled items form part of the stockholding, since these carry handling and recording obligations. State the hours, including any callout expectation where the site runs beyond office hours.
FAQs
What are the main stores assistant duties?
The main duties are issuing materials and consumables against approved requisitions, recording issues against job numbers or cost centres, receiving and storing incoming supplies, monitoring reorder levels, maintaining stores records, controlling tool and equipment issue, and conducting cycle counts.
What are examples of stores assistant duties?
Examples include issuing a spare part against a maintenance work order and recording it to the job, receiving and checking a supplier delivery, raising a replenishment request when an item hits its reorder point, tracking an outstanding tool return, and counting a section of stores during a cycle count.
How is a stores assistant different from a warehouse stock clerk?
A stores assistant supplies internal users such as maintenance and production, working from a requisition-based issue point, and is measured on availability of critical items and control of issues. A warehouse stock clerk handles product destined for external customers, and is measured on picking and delivery accuracy.
How should stores assistant duties be written in a job description or CV?
On a CV, give the site type, the number of line items, the internal teams served and any measurable reduction in stock-outs. In a job description, describe who the stores serves, the line item count, the system, the authority to refuse requisitions and whether hazardous materials are held.
Which related duties page should I read next?
For the control-focused stock role, read stock controller duties. For other roles in this cluster, browse General Worker Logistics Duties.