The Post Office wants to install kiosks in its nationwide network to help deliver public services, following a successful trial.

But the government is stalling on a decision on the future of the project.

The £30m 'Your Guide' trial in Leicestershire and Rutland finished at the end of March.

The six-month pilot aimed to help the public through the maze of officialdom using a mixture of kiosks, counter service, face-to-face and postal advice.

Touchscreen kiosks in 269 Post Offices (POs) provided information about benefits, pensions, jobs and community groups from various sources including government, commercial companies and voluntary organisations.

A nationwide roll out across the PO network could be the key to meeting the government's 2005 deadline for online public services, says Your Guide director Dave Waltho.

'Government is trying to improve services at reduced cost but you can only do that with economies of scale, which is what the PO infrastructure can offer.

'We could knock the target on the head both in terms of availability and usage because we are reaching those least likely to have access to technology,' he said.

If the number of people using the kiosks in the trial were replicated nationally, it would be the equivalent of 8 million users accessing 30 million sessions on the system's 9000 pages.

Some 30 per cent of the kiosk users had never used a PC before, and 86 per cent said they were satisfied with the experience.

The government provided £25m to support the project, but it may be another nine months before a decision is made on any future developments, claims Waltho. A report evaluating the trial is due in June.

Ecommerce minister Douglas Alexander refused to confirm whether the project would definitely be rolled out nationally.

'A full and robust evaluation of the pilot outcomes is necessary to inform the future planning for the network.

'The evaluation is examining the extent to which the Your Guide concept can deliver services that citizens really want and need, and the extent to which it can provide value for money for government departments and other organisations,' said Alexander.