Paul Collingwood will be part of England’s coaching staff for the whole Ashes tour this winter, a sign of his grooming for the head coach’s role in the future.

Collingwood has toured with England for short stints in the past but Telegraph Sport understands he will take on a full-time role as part of Trevor Bayliss’s backroom staff with planning for the Ashes tour later this year already fully underway.

Collingwood, who turns 41 next month, is likely to be in his last season as a player for Durham and this winter has an opportunity to carve out a future coaching role with England.

Bayliss is contracted until the end of the 2019 World Cup but is unlikely to stay on longer. After appointing an Australian to coach England, Andrew Strauss, the director of cricket, would undoubtedly like to promote English talent when the job next becomes available and, unlike most coaches in county cricket, Collingwood has plenty of top-level playing experience around the world.

Collingwood has impressed England in the past with his fielding drills and the batsmen speak highly of his ability to give throwdowns both right and left-handed without the use of the dog thrower tool used by most coaches these days. The fact the England & Wales Cricket Board is looking to tie Collingwood down now, more than six months before the Ashes tour, is a sign of how highly they regard his input.