ESA and student income

My client is on income based-ESA and DLA, and has just started a FT university course.  The ESA helpline have told him on no less than 3 occasions that if he does not apply for his living-costs loan, it won’t be taken into account as income and he will be able to keep his full weekly payments of ESA.  However I think that they should be taking it into account as notional income during term time whether he applies for it or not, and he is risking an overpayment of ESA.  He has asked them to put their advice in writing but of course got the answer ‘we don’t do that’.

Am I missing something blindingly obvious here?

Thanks Tony, I was pretty sure I was right but they make you doubt your own sanity sometimes…