Students attending a school ball at Wellington's Te Papa museum have been turned away tonight after a suspicious package was found.

The national museum was evacuated this evening after a suspicious package was located in a loading dock, police said in a statement.

"Police were notified just after 6pm. Te Papa management initiated an evacuation as a precaution.

"Police teams are in attendance assessing the situation."

Wellington Girls College was due to hold a school ball at Te Papa tonight but attendees arriving for the event at 7.30pm were being turned away, Stuff reported.

Police were seen guarding the entrance to the building.

It is understood the party-goers were being housed at the nearby Wharewaka on Wellington's waterfront.

Specialist police teams were at the scene investigating.

We have evacuated our building as a precaution, working with police to resolve the issue. Will update when we can.

— Te Papa (@Te_Papa) June 8, 2018