Mr Burnham came fourth in the Labour leadership contest and served as Secretary of State for Health in Gordon Brown's Government.
Previously he was culture secretary and chief secretary to the Treasury.
Four other shadow education ministers will serve on the Labour frontbench, but details of their ministerial briefs have yet to be confirmed.
Mr Miliband has chosen a large number of new MPs elected in the last general election to be promoted to shadow ministerial posts.
They include the new MP for Chesterfield, Toby Perkins, who in May won the seat from the Liberal Democrats with a 3.9 per cent swing, one of the largest gains for Labour in the country.
Register now to continue reading
Thank you for visiting Nursery World and making use of our archive of more than 35,000 expert features, subject guides, case studies and policy updates. Why not register today and enjoy the following great benefits:
What's included
-
Free access to 4 subscriber-only articles per month
-
Unlimited access to news and opinion
-
Email newsletter providing activity ideas, best practice and breaking news
Already have an account? Sign in here
