A senior banker who has spent 46 years with Barclays – 24 of them in Kent – has come a long way since stoking fires for his first branch manager at the age of 16.

Roger Cowap, 62, has stepped down as the bank’s Kent corporate director but is staying on as a part-time consultant.

His switch to “semi-retirement” coincides with the move by the bank's corporate team from Ashford to Kings Hill, near West Malling.

Mr Cowap recalled his first job in the North West where he was born. “I was office junior stoking the branch manager’s fire in Chester and putting it out,” he said.

He went on to work in 19 different roles for the same employer, including several in the county. He moved to Kent in 1989, working since then in Canterbury, Maidstone and Ashford.

He said his greatest pride came from “seeing clients succeed.”

He felt Kent had done better than most other parts of the country in recent times. “Because of the diverse economy in Kent, we’re tended to be a little bit recession-proof," he said.

"That diverse economy had helped businesses across the county.”

Mark Moran, 38, has taken over from Mr Cowap as Kent director. He was previously with HSBC and Santander.