Originally opened in 1858, the station closed in 1969 and was sold into private hands in 1983 to subsequently become the current centrepiece of the Lavender Line, a heritage railway.

The Saxby & Farmer signalbox was structurally sound, as was the main booking hall area which nevertheless needed new ceilings and windows, and part of the slate roof had to be relaid.

Track materials came from a British Rail surplus at Croydon and three sidings were subsequently laid out with a small headshunt together with a special connection to facilitate the easy unloading of stock delivered by road.

[6] Rolling stock was purchased and the first engine, a Barclay 0-4-0 saddle tank locomotive (945/1904) known as "Annie", arrived on 23 February 1984, the 15th anniversary of the station's closure.

The second engine, a WD Austerity 2-10-0, came to Isfield shortly afterwards and, following a year-long restoration, was the object of a visit by Dame Vera Lynn on 6 August 1985 who gave the locomotive her name.

[9] In December 2008, a petition was presented to East Sussex County Council requesting that it acquire the trackbed from the Lavender Line's northern boundary to the former site of Uckfield station, to lease back the section and to allow heritage services to be run over it.