The Rugby Football Union has said it is aiming to have a 30 per cent increase in female representation and a 15 per cent increase in BAME members on the board by August 2022.

The announcement comes as the governing body highlighted four areas in which it needs to improve on inclusion and diversity.

The first is fans, followers and partners; second is highlighted as game play – players, coaches, match officials; third is staff and board and the final area is game administration – volunteer leaders within clubs, constituent bodies and council.

RFU chair Andy Cosslett said: “The RFU needs to step up its efforts to improve diversity and inclusion across our game. We are living through testing times, but this will not deter us from grasping the opportunity to better reflect the society we live in.

“We have worked hard to understand our starting point and are now underway with a plan that we are confident will produce big improvements in our diversity and inclusion over the next few years. Rugby Union has always prided itself as being a ‘game for all’...we must now demonstrate beyond any doubt that we mean it.”

In addition, while the RFU once again stated the Swing Low Sweet Chariot song sang at England matches will not be banned, it has committed to educating fans on the song’s history as well as ‘providing platforms for diverse voices’.

A documentary which features former BAME England players and Josephine Wright, Professor of Music and Black Studies at The College of Wooster, will be released ahead of the first England game since lockdown, a match against the Barbarians on October 25, 

The film will be debuted on October 23 and will feature in matchday content when fans are allowed back in stadiums.