The money, which will be split between the local authorities in each partnership area, is intended to meet the costs incurred during the transfer of services to local authority control. But the process is shrouded in secrecy with Connexions partnerships required to bid for a share of the money without being clear about what it can be used to fund.

Figures obtained under the Freedom of Information Act show the amount awarded varies vastly between areas, from £1.5m to as little as £12,000, with others yet to find out how much they will receive.

Connexions Coventry & Warwickshire bid for more than £600,000 to help manage its transition, but received just £50,000. The service's executive director Steve Stewart said: "The government needs to be transparent about what it's done and it needs to be more consistent."

A spokesman for the National Association of Connexions Partners agreed there was concern about the lack of transparency surrounding the money. "There has been no consistency in the allocation of funds," he said. "This is taking up massive amounts of time at management level as there are concerns about what sort of service will be running after April. If all your attention is spent on that then it is very difficult to improve your service at the same time."

A spokeswoman for the Department for Children, Schools and Families (DCSF) said it was to be expected that transition costs would vary across England. "Some are making major structural changes, while others are continuing with their current delivery arrangements," she said.

But Nigel Szymczyk, chair of Unison's national Connexions and careers forum, said the DCSF was not prepared to face up to the issue: "Once the DCSF has committed partnerships to the process it is looking to extricate itself from the problem. For our members it's a time of great uncertainty."