They have taken more than three months to work out their differences, but yesterday Brian Ashton and the RFU concluded a grim period for the coach and governing body. Ashton will take up a consultancy role with the union that will leave him free to offer the services of his new company to other sporting bodies and to corporations outside sport.

At least Ashton, who was dismissed as England head coach in April, has not lost his sense of humour in the intervening period, during which his former charges undertook a tour to New Zealand that went wrong on the field, losing 2-0 to the All Blacks, and off the field, with late-night escapades attracting lurid headlines. He has established his own company, SCD SouthWest Ltd, which offers high-level performance processes; the SCD stands for Something Completely Different, as in the Monty Python catchphrase and film title.

The RFU, which installed Martin Johnson as England team manager after Ashton led England to the 2007 World Cup final and to second place in this year’s RBS Six Nations Championship, their best finish for five years, has acknowledged how poorly it handled his departure. Only last Sunday, at its annual meeting, the union came under renewed criticism from grassroots officials for its treatment of Ashton and it will be relieved that it has not had to make considerable financial amends after, effectively, leaving him in limbo.

“It has been a stressful time,” Ashton, who will be 62 in September, said. “But from my point of view there is a lot of exciting potential in that the new agreement keeps me involved with a pretty high level of rugby, while offering the flexibility to operate in other areas which, intellectually, could open up my mind a bit more.”

Initially the RFU hoped that Ashton would remain on its books as head coach to the national academy, but that role has changed since he occupied it from 2002 to 2006. To his credit, Ashton refused consistently to fulminate publicly at his employer when there were plenty of legal firms who believed that he had a strong case for constructive dismissal. He has taken time to work out the next step of a career in which he has coached England and Ireland, as well as twice serving as England’s assistant coach.

“I’m grateful to the RFU for allowing me time and space to consider my future plans,” Ashton said. “I’ll be working with people in sport and in business, trying to offer high-level performance, which is something I’ve been doing for most of my life in one way or another.”

His new contract, which is renewable annually and comes into effect next month, will initially mean him working with England’s most promising coaches and with young players. He is likely to be closely involved with Kevin Bowring, the RFU head of elite coach development, and Nigel Redman, Bowring’s new manager, and with Stuart Lancaster, the union’s new head of elite player development.

“We fully understand and support Brian’s desire to develop his own business interests and are delighted that he has agreed to offer his services to us,” Francis Baron, the RFU chief executive, said.

- Harlequins will play their Heineken Cup pool match against Stade Français at the Stade de France on December 6. The Parisian club have drawn nearly 80,000 spectators to some Top 14 games at the national stadium over the past two years.

Seru Rabeni, the Leicester centre, has been banned for nine weeks, starting from August 15, by an RFU disciplinary panel after admitting playing in three sevens tournaments while serving a 14-week suspension. The Fijian defied the ban he earned for gouging the eye of Andy Kyriacou, the Saracens hooker, in a Guinness Premiership match in March.