Rugby Football Union chief executive Ian Ritchie has claimed that the board will take "sufficient time" to appoint a new head coach following the departure of Stuart Lancaster.

The 46-year-old stepped down from his position this afternoon after the Red Rose failed to progress past the group stage in their home World Cup.

Lancaster, who was appointed permanent England head coach in April 2012 following an interim spell from 2011, guided the team to 28 Test wins out of 48 matches, taking them to four second-place finishes in the Six Nations.

Ritchie has revealed that after an extensive review, which involved the players, the decision was mutually made to make coaching changes.

In a press conference this afternoon, Ritchie said: "I think we all know in elite sport is about fine margins and we saw that in this Rugby World Cup but it's also about winning in a highly competitive environment. We've conducted a comprehensive review of what happened - the panel saw 29 people and I spoke privately and at length with another 30 people.

"We spent a lot of time with Stuart during this period. We've had extensive feedback from the players, all of them have had the opportunity to participate in the review. The panel was rigorous and objective in asking questions. After the conclusion of the panel I spent several hours with Stuart and we together concluded that it was time for a new head coach - this action was unanimously endorsed by the RFU board.

"We now need to look to the future and our focus has to be about recruiting the best possible head coach. We're looking for a head coach with international experience and while this is a priority, it's important that we take sufficient time to find the right person. I will continue to do all that I can with my colleagues and the board to achieve success for English rugby going forward."

Reports emerged this week claiming that the RFU have already approached Australia coach Michael Cheika, but those rumours were shot down by the governing body.